t6  L- 


SEX  WORSHIP. 


SEX  WORSHIP: 


AN  EXPOSITION  OF  THE  PHALLIC 
ORIGIN  OF  RELIGION. 


BY 

CLIFFORD   HOWARD. 


amasljtnstan,  13.  (£. 

PUBLISHED    BY   THE   AUTHOR. 
I897. 


COPYRIGHT 

BY    CLIFFORD    HOWARD, 

1897. 


CONTENTS. 


Introduction 7 

Chapter  I.         The  Basis  of  Religion  .  .  13 

Chapter  II.       The  Male  Principle  ...  26 

Chapter  III.      The  Phallus 42 

Chapter  IV.      Phallic  Emblems  ....  61 

Chapter  V.       Sexual  Sacrifices  ....  77 

Chapter  VI.      The  Female  Principle  .  .  90 

Chapter  VII.    Feminine  Emblems  .  .    .    .  102 
Chapter  VIII.  The  Serpent  and  the 

Cross 123 

Chapter  IX.      The  Divine  Act 138 

Chapter  X.       Regeneration 153 


INTRODUCTION. 

No  subject  is  of  greater  importance  and 
significance  in  the  history  of  the  human 
race  than  that  of  sex  worship,  the  adoration 
of  the  generative  organs  and  their  functions 
as  symbols  of  the  procreative  powers  of  na- 
ture. It  was  the  universal  primitive  re- 
ligion of  the  world  and  has  left  its  indelible 
impress  upon  our  ideas,  our  language  and 
our  institutions.  It  constitutes  the  basis 
of  all  religious  systems  and  the  origin  of 
our  most  sacred  symbols  and  many  of  our 
most  familiar  customs  ;  in  a  word,  it  is  the 
foundation  of  religious  thought  and  con- 
duct. 

Phallic  (sex)  worship  was  not  confined 
to  any  one  race  nor  to  any  particular 
age  in  the  history  of  the  world,  but  was 
the  religion  of  all  nations  at  all  times.  It 
was  the  worship  inspired  by  the  phenomena 
of  nature  in  her  great  mystery  of  life, 
and  while  its  resultant  mythologies  and 
attendant  ceremonials  were  carried  and 
adapted  from  one  nation  to  another,  it  had 


is  SEX  WORSHIP. 

numerous  independent  originations  ;  for 
the  human  mind,  as  a  whole,  is  always 
affected  in  the  same  way  under  similar  con- 
ditions, and  the  wondrous  phenomenon  of 
procreation  has  ever  aroused  in  primitive 
man  a  deep  and  religious  reverence  for  the 
animating  powers  of  life. 

While  the  highest  development  of  phalli- 
cism  was  reached  by  the  ancient  Egyptians, 
Hindoos,  Assyrians,  Greeks  and  Romans, 
whose  records  and  remains  abound  in  evi- 
dence of  the  phallic  basis  of  their  elaborate 
mythologies  and  religious  celebrations,  the 
existence  of  this  early  form  of  religion  is  to 
be  found  in  every  part  of  the  globe  in- 
habited by  man.  Babylon,  Persia,  Hindu- 
stan, Ceylon,  China,  Japan,  Burmah,  Java, 
Arabia,  Syria,  Asia  Minor,  Egypt,  Ethiopia, 
Europe,  the  British  Isles,  Mexico,  Yucatan, 
Peru  and  various  other  parts  of  America — 
all  yield  abundant  evidence  to  the  same 
effect  and  point  to  a  common  origin  of  re- 
ligious beliefs. 

It  must  not,  however,  be  imagined  that 
phallic  worship  is  a  religion  belonging  en- 
tirely  to   the    past    ages.      It    is    common 


INTRODUCTION.  9 

among  primitive  races  in  all  parts  of  the 
world  to-day  ;  and  in  India,  where  this 
form  of  religion  has  existed  uninterruptedly 
since  its  foundation, thousands  of  years  ago, 
tli ere  are  at  the  present  time  upwards  of  one 
hundred  million  true  phallic-worshippers. 
Among  the  Zuni  and  other  North  Ameri- 
can tribes  phallicism  enters  into  a  number 
of  their  religious  ceremonies,  while  the  na- 
tives of  many  of  the  Pacific  islands  and  cer- 
tain parts  of  Africa  are  most  ardent  devo- 
tees in  the  worship  of  the  procreative 
functions,  and  exhibit  their  religion  in  the 
realistic  and  unequivocal  manner  of  prime- 
val naturalness. 

Phallicism  is  a  well-nigh  limitless  subject, 
entering  as  it  does  into  every  stage  in  the 
evolution  of  human  thought  and  conduct. 
A  thorough  and  exhaustive  treatment  of 
the  subject  would  require  many  large  vol- 
umes, and  the  present  work  is  designed 
simply  as  an  outline,  for  the  purpose  of  set- 
ting forth  some  of  the  principal  and  more 
salient  features  of  sex  worship,  in  testimony 
of  the  natural  basis  and  common  origin  of 
religious    faiths.       No    attempt    has    been 


10  SEX  WORSHIP. 

made  to  discuss  the  more  abstruse  and 
subtle  phases  of  the  subject,  which, 
although  of  great  value  and  interest,  could 
not  appropriately  be  treated  in  a  work  of  so 
general  a  character  as  the  present  one. 

Up  to  this  time  the  subject  has  been  con- 
fined to  a  small  class  of  scholars  and  inves- 
tigators, whose  works  are  exceedingly  diffi- 
cult to  obtain,  both  by  reason  of  their  rarity 
and  costliness,  and,  in  consequence,  the 
general  reader  has  had  little  or  no  oppor- 
tunity of  acquainting  himself  with  the 
revelations  of  this  important  subject.  Fur- 
thermore, the  majority  of  these  works  are  of 
a  technical  or  abstruse  character,  while 
many  of  them  are  written  in  other  lan- 
guages or  contain  numerous  untranslated 
quotations  from  Greek,  Latin,  French, 
Italian  and  other  foreign  authors  ;  so  that 
notwithstanding  the  interest  of  the  sub- 
ject, its  general  mode  of  presentation  has 
been  such  as  to  render  it  unattractive, 
except  to  the  special  student,  even  though 
an  opportunity  of  studying  the  subject  had 
been  presented. 

The    present    work    embodies    a    large 


INTRODUCTION.  II 

amount  of  original  research,  besides  that  of 
investigators  both  ancient  and  modern,  all 
of  whose  works  have  been  carefully  studied, 
and  has  for  its  object,  in  addition  to  its 
primary  purpose  of  demonstrating  the  phal- 
lic origin  of  religious  worship,  a  popular 
presentation  of  this  important  and  interest- 
ing subject,  in  the  belief  that  it  will  be  re- 
ceived and  appreciated  by  the  thoughtful 
and  intelligent  public,  for  whom  it  is  alone 
designed,  in  the  spirit  that  its  value  and 
significance  deserve. 

In  viewing  the  forms  and  ceremonials 
connected  with  the  nature-worship  of  primi- 
tive civilization,  it  should  be  constantly 
borne  in  mind  that  they  are  not  always  to  be 
understood  in  their  direct  and  obvious 
sense,  but  are  to  be  considered  as  symboli- 
cal representations  of  that  which  is  pure 
and  holy,  and  that  the  teachings  and  rites 
of  sex  worship  were  as  sacred  and  dear  to 
the  pious  devotees  of  those  early  days  as  are 
the  principles  of  our  religion  to  us.  It  must 
be  remembered  that  religion,  in  whatever 
form  it  may  be  manifested,  always  repre- 
sents man's  highest  and  purest  thought  ; 


12  SEX  WORSHIP. 

that  no  one  would  deliberately  introduce 
into  his  religious  worship  anything  that  to 
his  mind  is  impure. 

Therefore,  however  extravagant  or  ab- 
surd phallic  worship  may  appear  to  us  at 
this  day,  let  us  not  forget  that  it  represents 
a  stage  in  the  evolution  of  the  human  mind ; 
that  it  was  man's  religion  at  the  dawn  of 
civilization,  and  that  the  grandest  theolo- 
gies of  to-day  are  the  outcome  of  this  prim- 
itive worship  ;  that  it  constitutes  the  basis 
of  all  that  is  sacred,  holy  and  beautiful. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  BASIS  OF  RELIGION. 

Of  all  the  phenomena  of  nature  there  is 
none  that  has  always  so  strongly  excited 
the  wonder  and  reverence  of  mankind  as 
that  of  procreation — the  transmission  of  life 
from  one  generation  to  another.  At  all 
times  and  on  all  hands  we  behold  nature 
engaged  in  her  ceaseless  work  of  reproduc- 
tion, and  yet  the  mystery  of  that  wondrous 
creative  power,  which  causes  the  plant  to 
spring  from  the  tiny  seed  and  brings  the 
child — a  new  being — into  the  world,  is  to- 
day as  deep  and  inspiring  as  it  was  to  the 
mind  of  man  in  the  early  dawn  of  the 
world's  history. 

One  of  the  first  problems  of  human 
thought  is  that  regarding  creation.  Where 
do  we  come  from  ?  How  is  life  produced  ? 
Who  brings  the  new  beings  into  the  world  ? 
are  the  natural  and  innocent  questions  that 
perplex  the  mind  of  every  child  ;  and  when, 
from   a    sense   of   modesty,   we    evade   an 


14  SEX  WORSHIP. 

explanation  of  the  physical  features  of  re- 
production by  telling  the  little  one  that  God 
is  the  author  of  all  life,  it  is  simply  an  ad- 
mission on  our  part  that  we  regard  the 
creative  power  as  emanating  from  a  source 
beyond  ourselves,  and  that  we  are,  there- 
fore, really  no  wiser  than  the  child  ;  for  our 
acquaintance  with  the  generative  functions 
and  our  knowledge  of  the  part  they  play  in 
the  phenomenon  of  procreation  only  add  to 
the  mystery,  and  render  the  secret  of  life  all 
the  more  wonderful  and  incomprehensible. 

In  fact,  it  is  the  means  by  which  genera- 
tion is  accomplished  that  appeals  to  man 
with  greater  force  and  impressiveness,  and 
exerts  a  more  potent  influence  upon  his 
ideas  and  conduct,  than  aught  else  in  the 
world.  That  affinity  which  draws  the  two 
sexes  together  for  the  purpose  of  uniting  in 
the  production  of  a  new  being  ;  that  over- 
mastering, universal  impulse — the  sexual 
instinct — is  the  most  powerful  factor  in  all 
that  pertains  to  the  human  race,  and  has 
ever  been  the  object  of  man's  reverence  and 
worship. 

In  this  day  and  age,  when  matters  per- 


THE  BASIS  OF  RELIGION.  15 

taining  to  the  sexes  are  generally  avoided, 
and  we  are  taught  that  the  sexual  appetite 
is  an  animal  craving  that  should  be  subdued 
and  concealed  as  unworthy  of  man's  supe- 
rior nature,  it  is  not  surprising  that  the 
great  majority  of  persons  are  blind  to  the 
vast  importance  and  significance  of  the 
sexual  nature  in  its  relation  to  the  affairs  of 
the  world,  and  that  they  fail  to  realize  that 
not  only  is  it  the  cause  of  our  individual 
existence,  but  that  it  is  the  foundation  of  all 
society  and  the  well-spring  of  human  life 
and  happiness. 

It  is  not  our  purpose  here  to  enter  upon  a 
discussion  of  the  physiological  features  of 
the  subject,  showing  the  intimate  and  un- 
avoidable relationship  existing  between  the 
mind  and  the  sexual  instinct  ;  but  suffice 
it  to  say,  that  were  man  deprived  of  this 
instinct  it  would  not  only  result  in  the  exter- 
mination of  the  race  (for  procreation  would 
be  impossible  in  the  absence  of  this  ani- 
mating desire),  but  all  ambition,  endeavor 
and  affection,  all  poetry,  art  and  religion— 
in  short,  all  the  emotions  and  achievements 
inspired  by  what  we  term  "  love,"  would 


16  SEX  WORSHIP. 

cease,  and  the  world  would  become  cold 
and  passionless,  destitute  of  sentiment  or 
aspiration,  devoid  of  any  incentive  to  pro- 
gress or  energy,  while  the  intricate  and  re- 
ciprocal machinery  of  human  society, 
robbed  of  its  motive  force,  would  come  to 
a  stop  and  crumble  away  in  hopeless  dis- 
organization. 

It  is  universally  admitted  that  love  is  the 
animating  spirit  of  the  world  ;  and  what  is 
love  but  a  manifestation  of  the  sexual  in- 
stinct ?  The  civilized  man,  who  woos  the 
object  of  his  affection  through  the  medium 
of  inspired  poetry  and  other  sentimental 
graces,  who  reveals  the  longings  of  his 
heart  in  language  and  conduct  at  once  pure, 
exalted  and  tender,  and  who  instinctively 
shrinks  from  the  suggestion  of  any  sensu- 
ality in  his  feelings,  is  nevertheless  actuated 
by  precisely  the  same  motive  as  that  which 
governs  the  savage  in  his  brutal  and  un- 
couth demonstration  of  desire  toward  one 
of  the  opposite  sex.  Each  is  but  giving 
expression,  in  accordance  with  his  indi- 
vidual nature  and  social  conditions,  to  the 
same  feeling,  the  same  impulse.     In  the  one 


THE  BASIS  OF  RELIGION.  17 

case  we  recognize  it  as  love  ;  in  the  other, 
as  sensuality  ;  yet  both  spring  from  the 
same  source  ;  both  are  animated  by  the 
same  instinct. 

Whatever  reluctance  there  may  be  in  ad- 
mitting this  physical  truth,  is  due  to  the 
unfortunate  fact  that  we  have  been  taught 
to  regard  the  generative  nature  as  confined 
wholly  within  the  narrow  limits  of  its  purely 
sensual  manifestations,  as  exhibited  in  lust 
and  mere  animal  gratification  ;  and,  conse- 
quently, we  fail  to  appreciate  it  in  its  higher, 
nobler  and  all-pervading  form  of  love.  But 
viewing  it  in  its  broad  and  true  aspect,  tin- 
trammeled  by  arbitrary  definitions,  we  are 
forced  to  admit  its  vital  importance  as  the 
supreme  factor  in  the  life  and  welfare  of  the 
human  race. 

Love,  as  an  abstract  power,  is  ever  glori- 
fied and  idealized,  because  we  see  in  it  the 
source,  the  inspiration,  of  all  beauty,  mo- 
rality and  sublimity  ;  the  incentive  to  deeds 
of  the  highest  and  noblest  character  ;  the 
elevating  and  controlling  spirit  of  man's 
life.  Every  poet,  every  artist,  every  com- 
poser, all  who  are  gifted  with  the  power  of 


Io  SEX  WORSHIP. 

most  truly  expressing  the  loftiest  emotions 
and  feelings  of  mankind  have  found  their 
inspiration  in  the  inexhaustible  theme  of 
love  ;  and  no  language,  no  expression,  has 
ever  been  deemed  too  exalted,  too  far- 
reaching,  for  the  portrayal  of  this  universal 
and  omnipotent  passion. 

In  our  idealization  of  love  it  soars  be- 
yond the  bounds  of  earthly  limitations,  and 
we  hesitate  not  to  ascribe  to  it  a  divine  char- 
acter and  embrace  it  in  the  most  sacred  and 
exalted  sphere  of  man's  intellectual  domain 
— religion.  Nay,  do  we  not  raise  it  to  the 
highest  point  capable  of  attainment  by  the 
human  mind,  when  we  reverently  exclaim, 
"  God  is  love  !  " — when  we  bow  down  and 
worship  it  as  the  divine  essence,  the 
supreme  power  ? 

It  is  not  within  the  province  of  this  work 
to  attempt  a  complete  analysis  of  love,  or 
sexuality,  in  its  complex  relation  to  these 
higher  and  more  subtle  phases  of  human 
thought  and  conduct  ;  but  enough  has  been 
said  to  indicate  that  the  animating  spirit  of 
the  human  mind — the  underlying  principle 
of  its  lofty  and  holy  emotions — is  the  spirit- 


THE  BASIS  OF  RELIGION.  19 

ualizing  power  of  love  ;  that  this  impulse 
lies  at  the  foundation  of  all  thought  and 
action,  and  finds  its  grandest  and  most  ex- 
alted expression  in  religion. 

Love  is  both  the  foundation  and  the  pin- 
nacle of  religion  ;  the  beginning  and  the 
end  of  human  thought  and  aspiration.  Re- 
ligious emotion  springs  from  the  animating 
power  of  love,  and  through  the  emotion 
thus  aroused  we  deify  and  worship  the  in- 
spirational source  of  our  spiritual  longings. 
In  every  sense,  both  physical  and  spiritual, 
both  material  and  ideal,  love  is  the  ani- 
mating, creative  force  of  the  world  ;  the 
divine  immanence  of  the  universe  ;  the 
actuating  source  of  life  and  the  indwelling 
spirit  of  the  soul  ;  the  beginning  and  end 
of  all  that  is. 

It  is  not  intended,  however,  that  the  proof 
of  the  basis  of  religious  worship  shall  alone 
rest  upon  a  physiological  analysis,  however 
complete  or  demonstrative,  but  that  the 
records  of  human  history  shall  bear  witness 
to  the  fact  that  theology  has  sprung  from 
the  animating  impulse  of  life,  and  that  it  has 
for   its   primary   and   universal   object   the 


20  SEX  WORSHIP. 

worship  of  its  inspiring  cause  ;  the  worship 
of  the  mystery  of  life,  of  creation  and  repro- 
duction ;  the  worship  of  the  omnipotent 
creative  power. 

When  the  ambassador  from  the  French 
court  presented  to  the  Buddhist  king  of 
Siam  the  request  of  Louis  XIV  that  he 
would  embrace  Christianity,  he  replied  : 
"  It  is  strange  that  the  king  of  France 
should  interest  himself  so  much  in  a  matter 
which  concerns  only  God,  whilst  He  whom 
it  does  concern  seems  to  have  left  it  wholly 
to  our  discretion.  Had  it  been  agreeable 
to  the  Creator  that  all  nations  should  have 
the  same  form  of  worship,  would  it  not  have 
been  as  easy  for  him  in  his  omnipotence  to 
have  created  all  men  with  the  same  senti- 
ments and  dispositions  and  to  have  inspired 
them  with  the  same  notions  of  the  True  Re- 
ligion, as  to  endow  them  with  such  different 
tempers  and  inclinations  ?  Ought  we  not 
rather  to  believe  that  the  true  God  has  as 
much  pleasure  in  being  honored  by  a 
variety  of  forms  and  ceremonies  as  in  being 
praised  and  glorified  by  a  number  of  differ- 
ent creatures  ?  " 


THE  BASIS  OF  RELIGION.  2I 

"  Even  they  who  worship  other  gods," 
says  Krishna,  the  incarnate  deity,  in  an 
ancient  Hindu  poem,  "worship  me  although 
they  know  it  not." 

These  expressions  embody  the  teachings 
of  the  higher  philosophy  of  the  Buddhist 
and  Hindu  religions,  which  recognize  the 
true  source  and  motive  of  all  religious 
faiths,  and  the  glorious  universality  of  "  the 
true  religion."  To  them  there  is  but  one 
religion  ;  one  supreme,  everlasting  truth  ; 
the  so-called  different  religions  of  the  world 
being  but  different  modes  of  manifesting 
and  expressing  this  eternal  truth. 

It  is  apparent  to  everyone  who  has  had 
an  opportunity  of  studying  the  subject,  that 
all  religious  faiths  have  had  a  common 
origin,  and  that  however  much  they  may 
differ  in  their  teachings  and  institutions, 
they  but  represent  different  methods  of 
worshipping  one  and  the  same  object. 
Brahma,  Jehovah,  God,  Allah  and  hundreds 
of  others  are  simply  different  names  for  the 
same  deity,  as  viewed  from  different  stand- 
points ;  and  this  deity,  this  universal  object 
of  adoration,  is  the  supreme  creative  power. 


22  SEX  WORSHIP. 

No  two  individuals,  however  closely  re- 
lated by  birth  and  circumstances,  ever  view 
the  same  object  in  exactly  the  same  light. 
Much  less,  therefore,  can  we  expect  widely 
separated  nations,  living  under  entirely  dif- 
ferent conditions,  to  resemble  one  another 
in  their  views  and  customs  and  to  construct 
similar  systems  of  morality  and  church  gov- 
ernment. Each  builds  its  social  and  theo- 
logical structure  in  accordance  with  its 
ideas  and  needs  ;  each  constructs  a  form  of 
religion  suitable  to  its  conditions  mental 
and  physical.  Every  being,  every  race, 
every  age,  has  a  religion  in  conformity  with 
its  individual  status  and  necessities.  The 
savage  no  more  comprehends  our  abstract, 
impersonal  conception  of  the  Almighty, 
than  can  we  understand  his  abject  rever- 
ence for  a  hideous  wooden  idol  ;  yet  both 
the  savage  and  ourselves  are  worshiping 
identically  the  same  object  and  are  actuated 
by  the  same  motive. 

These  facts  become  all  the  more  apparent 
when  we  note  how  great  is  the  diversity  of 
thought  and  conduct  among  people  of  the 
same  community  and  of  the  same  religious 


THE  BASIS  OF  RELIGION.  23 

faith.     Do  we  not  see  Christianity  broken 
up  into  a  multitude  of  sects  and  denomina- 
tions, each  observing  the  same  religion  in  a 
different  manner  ?     When  we  trace  the  de- 
velopment   of    Christian    civilization    back 
through  the  past   centuries,  we   find  that 
religious  notions  and  customs  have  been 
constantly  changing,  and  that  what  we  call 
Christianity  has  embraced  every  conceiv- 
able variety  of  thought  and  conduct  ;   that 
it  has  served  as  the  authority  for  practices 
and  institutions  which  at  another  time  have 
been  condemned  and  forbidden  by  the  same 
authority.     The    Inquisition    flourished    in 
its  name,  the  glorious  Crusades  were  car- 
ried on  under  its  banners  ;  we  have  seen  it 
casting  gloom  and  misery  upon  the  earth, 
and  we  have  beheld  it  bringing  joy  and 
liberty   to   the   world.     But,   despite   these 
marvelous  changes  and  contradictions,  who 
will  say  that  Christianity  itself  has  changed; 
that  the  foundation  on  which  it  rests  has 
been  shaken  ?     The  fundamental  doctrines 
have  remained  unaltered  ;  they  have  simply 
been  modified  and  adapted  to  the  various 
stages  in  the  evolution  of  human  thought, 


24  SEX  WORSHIP. 

now  appearing  in  one  form  and  now  in 
another,  concordantly  with  the  moral  and 
intellectual  development  of  the  race. 

So,  also,  do  we  find  that  many  of  the 
main  features  of  Christianity  are  simply 
modifications  or  adaptations  of  those  exist- 
ing in  older  forms  of  religion  ;  that  long 
prior  to  the  time  of  Christ  mankind  wor- 
shiped a  Creator  in  the  form  of  a  Triune 
God  ;  that  the  Hindoos,  Assyrians, 
Babylonians  and  other  ancient  people 
each  had  their  supreme  creative  Trinity  ; 
that  the  belief  in  a  Saviour,  a  son 
of  God,  who  was  born  of  a  virgin,  died 
for  the  salvation  of  man  and  rose  again 
after  death,  dates  back  centuries  and  thou- 
sands of  years  before  the  Christian  era,  as 
we  see  in  the  ancient  faiths  of  Egypt,  China 
and  India. 

In  short,  we  find  that  the  fundamental 
religious  beliefs  of  the  world  have  remained 
unchanged  from  time  immemorial,  how- 
ever diversified  and  varied  have  been 
their  superincumbent  theologies,  and 
that  beneath  the  outward  and  ceremonial 
differences  of  the  various  faiths  of  man- 


THE  BASIS  OF  RELIGION.  25 

kind,  throughout  all  the  world  and  through- 
out all  the  ages  of  human  history,  there  are 
to  be  found  the  same  legends  and  the  same 
doctrines,  all  pointing  to  a  common  origin, 
to  a  universal  foundation— the  worship  of 
nature  in  its  great  mystery  of  life  and  pro- 
creation. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE. 

As  was  stated  in  the  preceding  chapter, 
the  phenomenon  of  procreation  has  ever 
been  the  source  of  deepest  interest,  curiosity 
and  reverence,  and  we  may  readily  imagine 
how  strangely  and  forcibly  it  must  have  im- 
pressed itself  upon  the  mind  of  man  in 
those  early  days  of  his  social  development, 
when  he  was  more  directly  dependent  upon 
nature  than  he  is  now  and  when  the  necessi- 
ties of  his  condition  rendered  him  keenly 
observant  of  all  phenomena.  In  the  in- 
fancy of  man's  mentality  the  manifestations 
of  nature  were  unintelligible,  but  with  that 
instinct  which  is  still  inherent  in  the  human 
race,  he  struggled  with  his  finite  mind  to 
grasp  the  infinite,  and  in  his  vain  endeavor 
to  comprehend  the  forces  and  wonders  of 
the  universe  he  clothed  them  with  the 
imagery  of  his  untutored  mind,  and  they 
became  to  him  living  entities  like  himself  ; 
the  personifications  of  his  emotions  and  de- 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  27 

sires  ;  the  representations  of  superior  be- 
ings, upon  whom  he  was  dependent  for  his 
existence  and  happiness. 

Naturally,  he  learned  to  regard  most 
highly  that  which  not  only  afforded  him  the 
greatest  pleasure  and  the  greatest  good,  but 
which  appeared  to  him  as  the  most  power- 
ful and  the  most  incomprehensible,  and 
thus  it  was  that  he  came  to  look  upon  the 
generative  power  as  superior  to  aught  else. 
The  creative  act  was  his  incomparably 
greatest  pleasure  and  produced  the  most 
wonderful  and  most-prized  result — a  new 
being  like  himself.  Surely,  within  the 
range  of  his  observation  and  experience 
there  was  nothing  in  nature  at  once  so  mys- 
terious, so  potent,  so  awe-inspiring  ;  so 
overpowering  in  its  manifestations,  so  in- 
explicably marvelous  in  its  results  ;  silent 
and  invisible  in  its  operations  ;  omnipotent 
and  supreme  in  its  powers  and  capabilities. 

Man's  first  impulse  is  to  suppose  that  the 
immediately  preceding  act  is  the  cause  of 
the  immediately  succeeding  result,  and  it 
was  therefore  only  natural  that  at  first  man 
should  have  regarded  his  virile  member  as 


2§  SEX  WORSHIP. 

the  direct  and  sole  cause  of  both  his  pleas- 
ure and  of  his  offspring  ;  it  was  through 
it  that  the  greatest  of  all  things  in  nature 
was  accomplished, — a  wonderful  and  potent 
instrument,  endowed  apparently  with  inde- 
pendent life  and  activity  and  possessed  of  a 
power  transcending  all  others  in  greatness 
and  mystery. 

Hence  it  was  that  he  exalted  and  wor- 
shiped the  male  organ, — the  phallus  ;  wor- 
shiped it  not  only  as  the  creator  of  human 
life,  but  as  the  personification  of  the  world's 
creator,  or  the  symbol  of  the  procreative 
diety  ;  for,  in  common  with  all  the  other 
manifestations  of  nature,  the  generative 
power  was  deified  ;  it  was  ascribed  to  a 
divine  personality,  an  omnipotent,  mascu- 
line god, who  was  the  Creator,  the  Father,  of 
all  things,  and  hence  the  supreme  deity. 
His  power  was  almighty  ;  it  was  he  who 
controlled  life  and  procreation,  and  the 
phallus  was  his  living  and  sacred  emblem, 
as  the  divine  instrumentality  through  which 
he  accomplished  his  glorious  works. 

It  required  a  long  time  for  mankind  to 
reach  that  stage  in  which  the   mind  was 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  29 

capable  of  formulating  and  grasping  ab- 
stract notions  ;  of  disassociating  attributes 
and  feelings  from  the  objects  in  which  they 
are  manifested  ;  of  comprehending  a  power 
or  an  emotion  without  some  visible  and 
suggestive  symbol  ;  and  so  it  was  that  the 
phallus  became  the  divine  object  of  venera- 
tion, as  the  symbol,  if  not  the  real  person,  of 
the  Author  of  Life. 

When  we  consider  the  supreme  import- 
ance attached  to  the  begetting  of  children, 
in  ancient  times,  we  can  more  readily  com- 
prehend the  veneration  felt  for  the  organ  of 
generation  as  their  creator  ;    as  the  divine 
instrumentality  through  which  a  man's  and 
woman's  life  duty  was   fulfilled.     Barren- 
ness was  not  only  an  affliction,  but  a  curse. 
To  be  childless  was  to  a  woman  worse  than 
death.     It  was  the  supreme  religious  duty 
of  every  woman  to  bear  children  and  per- 
petuate the  seed  of  mankind,  and  it  was  at 
the  same  time  the  highest  ambition  of  every 
man  to  beget  sons  and  daughters.     Of  this 
we  have  ample  evidence  in  the  Scriptures 
and  other  ancient  records. 

We  are  told,  for  example,  how  earnestly 


30  SEX  WORSHIP. 

Abraham  and  Sarah  longed  for  a  child  and 
that  in  their  extremity  "  Sarai  said  unto 
Abram,  Behold  now  the  Lord  hath 
restrained  me  from  bearing  ;  I  pray  thee 
go  in  unto  my  maid  ;  it  may  be  that  I  may 
obtain  children  by  her.  And  Abram  heark- 
ened to  the  voice  of  Sarai." 

So,  also,  we  read  of  the  despair  of  Rachel 
at  her  barrenness — "  Give  me  children,  or 
else  I  die  !  "  and  she,  too,  as  a  last  resort, 
gave  her  maid  to  her  husband,  in  order  to 
thus  in  a  measure  palliate  her  affliction. 
And,  again,  we  learn  of  the  misery  endured 
by  Hannah,  "  because  the  Lord  had  shut 
up  her  womb.  And  she  was  in  bitterness 
of  soul,  and  prayed  unto  the  Lord,  and 
wept  sore." 

To  die  a  virgin,  as  Jephthah's  daughter 
was  obliged  to  do, — to  die  without  having 
borne  children, — was  an  awful  punishment 
and  curse  in  the  eyes  of  the  ancient  world. 
Rather  than  submit  to  the  possibility  of 
such  a  fate  women  would  resort  to  deceit, 
treachery  and  crime,  as  justifiable  under  the 
circumstances  ;  as  we  see  in  the  case  of 
Tamar,  who  deceived  her  father-in-law,  and 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  31 

in  the  story  of  Lot's  daughters,  who  com- 
mitted incest  with  their  father,  because  of 
their  secluded  abode  in  a  cave  in  the  moun- 
tain, "  where  no  man  could  come  in  unto 
them."  In  short,  the  begetting  of  children 
was  the  highest  and  holiest  aim  in  life,  the 
sole  purpose  of  human  existence  ;  an 
ancient  belief  which  is  so  abundantly  de- 
monstrated in  the  Old  Testament,  and  so 
well  known,  as  scarcely  to  require  particu- 
lar mention  here. 

Naturally,  the  woman  as  well  as  the  man 
looked  to  the  Creator  as  the  supreme  source 
of  her  happiness  and  comfort.  Through  him 
alone  could  she  obtain  the  greatest  of  all 
blessings  and  the  accomplishment  of  life's 
purpose  ;   and  it  was  to  him,  therefore,  that 
the  woman  prayed  for  children,  even  as  the 
woman  of  to-day  prays  to  God  for  a  similar 
blessing.     But  to  the  woman  of  the  past  the 
Creator  was    not    an  abstract,  impersonal, 
undefinable  being.     To  her  he  was  a  sub- 
stantial actuality,  existing  for  a  specific  and 
well-defined  purpose  ;  closely  and  definitely 
associated  with  the  object  of  her  prayers. 
He  was  directly  and  personally  concerned 


32  SEX  WORSHIP. 

in  the  act  of  generation,  the  sole  and 
supreme  purpose  for  which  he  had  brought 
mankind  into  the  world.  It  was  the  Creator 
himself  who  came  to  her,  through  the 
medium  of  the  man.  The  phallus  was  his 
divine  personality,  his  actual  presence  in 
material  form  and  potent  activity. 

That  this  was  the  idea  entertained  of  the 
Creator  in  ancient  times  is  shown  by  the 
biblical  expression,  "  The  Lord  came  in 
unto  her  ;  "  meaning  that  the  woman  had 
conceived  ;  that  the  Creator  had  manifested 
himself  unto  her  through  his  divine  person- 
ality in  the  shape  of  the  male  organ  of 
generation  ;  as  we  see,  for  example,  in  the 
2 1  st  chapter  of  Genesis,  relating  to  the  con- 
ception and  birth  of  Isaac  :  "  And  the  Lord 
visited  Sarah  as  he  had  said,  and  the  Lord 
did  unto  Sarah  as  he  had  spoken." 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  the  idea  of 
the  Creator  was  very  closely  associated 
with  what  his  name  specifically  signifies. 
The  phallus  was  his  most  sacred  emblem 
or  representative,  and,  according  to  the  Old 
Testament,  it  is  clearly  shown  that  the  God 
of  the  Hebrews  so  regarded  it  himself  ;   for 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  33 

the  Lord  ordained  that  it  should  be  spe- 
cially marked  and  should  thus  constitute 
the  sacred  token  of  the  contract  between 
himself  and  his  chosen  people,  and  to  this 
day  the  rite  of  circumcision  is  practised  by 
the  Jews  in  accordance  with  this  command, 
which  Jehovah  gave  to  Abraham,  the  father 
of  the  Israelites,  nineteen  hundred  years  be- 
fore Christ  :    "  And  God  said  unto  Abra- 
ham, This  is  my  covenant,  which  ye  shall 
keep  between  me  and  you  and  thy  seed  after 
thee  ;   every  man  child  among  you  shall  be 
circumcised.     And  ye  shall  circumcise  the 
flesh  of  your  foreskin  ;    and  it  shall  be  a 
token  of  the  covenant  betwixt  me  and  you. 
He  that  is  born  in  thy  house  and  he  that  is 
bought  with  thy  money  must  needs  be  cir- 
cumcised ;    and  my  covenant  shall  be  in 
your  flesh  for  an  everlasting  covenant." 

That  the  virile  member  was  considered 
as  specially  sacred  to  the  Creator,  either  as 
his  symbol  or  as  the  instrument  by  which 
his  divine  power  was  fulfilled,  is  universally 
evidenced  in  all  the  ancient  faiths  and  cus- 
toms. In  addition  to  the  rite  of  circum- 
cision just  mentioned,  the  Old  Testament 


34  SEX  WORSHIP. 

affords  numerous  examples  of  the  holiness 
attached  to  this  symbol.  It  was  a  common 
custom  among  the  Hebrews,  when  taking 
a  solemn  oath,  to  lay  the  hands  upon  the 
generative  organ  of  the  person  to  whom 
the  vow  or  promise  was  given.  This  was 
as  solemn  and  devout  a  procedure  as  is  the 
present  method  of  kissing  the  Bible  or  hold- 
ing up  the  right  hand,  and  was  indicative  of 
the  same  meaning — that  of  calling  upon 
God  to  witness  the  truth  and  sincerity  of  the 
oath. 

This  custom  is  referred  to  in  the  24th 
chapter  of  Genesis,  where  we  are  told  that 
"  Abraham  said  unto  his  eldest  servant, 
Put,  I  pray  thee,  thy  hand  under  my  thigh  ; 
and  I  will  make  thee  swear  by  the  Lord,  the 
God  of  Heaven  and  the  God  of  the  Earth, 
etc.,"  and  again,  in  the  47th  chapter  of  the 
same  book,  it  is  recorded  that  when  Jacob 
was  about  to  die  he  called  Joseph  to  him 
and  bade  him  put  his  hand  under  his  thigh, 
and  promise  that  he  would  not  bury  him  in 
Egypt.  This  practice  is  still  to  be  found  in 
certain  parts  of  Arabia  and  Africa,  and 
various  customs  of  a  like  character  might 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  35 

be  cited  in  further  evidence  of  the  sacred 
relationship  supposed  to  exist  between  the 
organ  of  generation  and  the  Creator.  It 
was  through  it  that  the  Creator  manifested 
his  supreme  power,  and  hence  it  was  an 
object  of  reverence  and  worship,  even  as 
was  the  Creator  himself. 

In  many  instances  prayers  were  devoutly 
offered  to  the  symbol,  in  the  belief  that  God 
was  thereby  being  addressed,  and  the  primi- 
tive belief  in  the  actual  presence  of  the 
Creator  in  the  generative  act  is  again  shown 
by  the  ancient  religious  practice  of  women 
who  submitted  themselves  to  the  embraces 
of  the  priests  as  the  divine  representatives 
of  God.  This  practice  was  not  an  unusual 
one,  and  was  resorted  to  especially  by 
barren  women,  in  the  devout  belief  that  by 
this  means  they  secured  divine  intercourse 
with  the  god,  or  the  procreative  deity,  and 
thereby  rendered  certain  their  chances  for 
bearing  children. 

This  custom  is  still  practised  in  India, 
and  it  is  not  uncommon  for  a  husband  to 
accompany  his  wife  to  the  priest  and  remain 
a  reverential  spectator  of  the  act  represent- 


36  SEX  WORSHIP. 

ing  the  union  of  God  and  the  woman.  In 
various  parts  of  India  certain  days  are  set 
apart  in  each  year  for  the  visitation  of  the 
creative  deity,  on  which  occasions  the 
women  repair  to  the  temples  and  there  re- 
ceive from  the  priests  the  sacred  blessing 
that  they  are  unable  to  obtain  from  the 
Creator  through  the  medium  of  their  hus- 
bands. 

Next  in  importance  to  procreation  itself, 
is  the  cause  that  determines  the  sex  of  the 
offspring.  Why  should  a  man  beget  a  son 
at  one  time  and  a  daughter  at  another  ? 
What  is  the  reason  for  this  sexual  differ- 
ence ?  This  is  the  question  we  are  vainly 
asking  ourselves  to-day  and  is  the  same 
question  that  bothered  the  minds  of  men  in 
the  past  ages.  Naturally,  an  explanation 
was  looked  for  in  some  characteristic  of  the 
phallus  as  the  responsible  creator  ;  and 
while  this  did  not  lead  to  a  complete  solu- 
tion of  the  mystery,  it  resulted  in  the  im- 
portant discovery  that  the  appendages  of 
the  organ  play  an  important  and  neces- 
sary part  in  the  act  of  creation,  and  the  dif- 
ference in  their  relative  size  and  position 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  37 

gave  rise  to  the  theory — which  is  held  by 
many  at  the  present  day, — that  the  right 
testicle  is  the  producer  of  the  stronger  sex, 
while  the  left  or  smaller  one  is  responsible 
for  the  women  of  the  world.  That  this  be- 
lief was  generally  entertained  by  the 
ancients  is  evidenced  by  the  allusions  to  it 
in  the  early  records,  including  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, where  fathers  refer  to  their  sons  as 
the  children  of  their  right  side. 

It  became  evident,  therefore,  that  the  per- 
fect creator  consisted  of  three  parts,  each 
distinct  and  complete  in  itself,  but  so  de- 
pendent one  upon  the  other  for  the  fulfill- 
ment of  their  office,  that  it  was  only  in  their 
unity  and  co-operation  that  they  were 
capable  of  productive  activity  as  an  abso- 
lute and  perfect  One. 

From  this  it  is  not  difficult  to  understand 
how  the  creative  deity  came  to  be  regarded 
as  a  triune  being,  nor  should  it  be  sur- 
prising to  learn,  therefore,  that  the  worship 
of  a  trinity  dates  back  to  the  dimmest  and 
most  remote  past.  The  Assyrians,  one  of 
the  most  ancient  nations  of  the  world,  wor- 
shiped a  trinity  known  as  Asshur,  Anu  and 


38  SEX  WORSHIP. 

Hoa,  and  upon  a  study  of  the  derivation 
of  these  names  we  find  that  they  refer 
directly  to  the  triune  generative  organ. 
Asshur  represents  the  phallus,  for  the  name 
plainly  signifies  "  the  erect  one,"  "  the  up- 
right member."  The  right  testicle,  which, 
as  the  assistant  in  the  production  of  male 
children,washeld  next  in  rank  to  the  phallus 
itself,  is  represented  by  Anu,  a  name  de- 
rived from  the  word  meaning  strength,  par- 
ticularly manly  strength  or  power,  while 
Hoa,  the  third  member  of  the  trinity,  has 
reference  to  the  feminine  element. 

In  this,  as  in  all  subsequent  trinities  of 
theology,  the  individuals  composing  it  were 
of  relative  rank  ;  three  distinct  entities  or 
members,  each  necessary  to  the  other, 
working  together  as  one  toward  one  end. 
As  a  whole  they  constituted  the  supreme 
god,  the  Creator,  under  the  collective  name 
of  Bel.  While  the  custom  of  giving  to  a 
trinity  a  name  distinct  from  any  of  its  com- 
ponent individuals  is  a  common  one  in  all 
religions,  it  is  not  generally  observed,  for, 
as  a  rule,  the  Trinity,  or  complete  Creator, 
is  known  under  the  name  of  the  first  in 
rank, — as  Asshur,  the  Lord  of  Lords. 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  39 

We  find,  therefore,  that  the  triune  com- 
position of  the  masculine  creator  was  early 
recognized,  and  the  veneration  in  which  the 
complete  and  perfect  male  organ  was  held 
is  most  clearly  shown  by  the  fact  that  it  was 
the  subject  of  religious  ordinances.  Of  this 
we  find  ample  demonstration  in  the  Old 
Testament,  where,  for  example,  in  the  23d 
chapter  of  Deuteronomy,  we  learn  that 
Jehovah  himself  ordained  that  "  he  that  is 
wounded  in  the  stones,  or  hath  his  privy 
member  cut  off,  shall  not  enter  the  congre- 
gation of  the  Lord,"  plainly  indicating  the 
divine  importance  attached  to  the  perfect 
condition  of  this  symbol  of  the  Creator. 

This  holy  regard  for  the  soundness  and 
at  the  same  time  for  the  safety  of  the  gen- 
erative organ  is  perhaps  more  fully  shown 
in  the  25th  chapter  of  the  same  book,  where 
it  is  commanded  by  the  Lord  that  a  woman 
shall  have  her  hand  cut  off  if  she  takes  hold 
of  her  husband  by  the  genitals,  even  though 
it  be  in  a  case  of  extremity  for  the  purpose 
of  delivering  him  from  an  enemy. 

It  must  not  be  supposed,  however,  that 
this  religious  reverence  for  perfect  mascu- 


4°  SEX   WORSHIP. 

Unity  is  confined  to  the  past,  for  at  the  pres- 
ent day  one  who  is  sexually  mutilated,  and 
therefore  not  "  a  man,"  cannot  be  conse- 
crated as  a  priest  nor  promoted  to  a  bishop- 
ric ;  much  less,  exalted  to  the  papal  throne. 

This  requirement,  that  religious  teachers 
and  leaders  shall  possess  a  generative 
organism  perfect  in  form  and  function,  is  a 
very  general  one  and  always  has  been,  nor 
is  it  restricted  to  persons  of  that  class,  but  is 
made  a  condition  precedent  for  the  holding 
of  various  other  offices  of  dignity  and  honor. 

A  eunuch  or  impotent  man  has  always 
been  a  despised  and  accursed  creature, 
scorned  alike  by  man  and  God.  In  olden 
times  castration  was  regarded  as  a  punish- 
ment far  worse  than  that  of  death  ;  a  fate 
that  degraded  a  man  below  the  level  of  the 
meanest  and  lowest  brute.  The  more 
virile  a  man  was,  the  greater  was  the  respect 
he  inspired  ;  and  the  veneration  paid  to  a 
god  was  always  proportionate  to  the  sexual 
abilities  ascribed  to  him.  Such  deities  as 
were  held  to  be  more  strongly  endowed 
with  virility  and  whose  office  pertained 
more  directly  to  the  procreative  functions 


THE  MALE  PRINCIPLE.  4* 

were  honored  above  their  fellow  gods,  and 
thus  it  is  that  the  Creator,  the  almighty  and 
everlasting  Producer,  has  ever  been  the 
supreme  god.  His  creative  powers  are  un- 
limited ;  hence,  he  is  the  ruler,  the  master 
of  all  other  gods  and  of  men. 


CHAPTER   III. 

THE  PHALLUS. 

The  worship  of  the  phallus,  the  masculine 
symbol  of  creation,  dates  back  into  the 
hidden  and  unknown  ages  of  the  past.  The 
earliest  records  of  the  Egyptians  and  the 
Hindoos  refer  to  phallic  worship  as  an  old- 
established  institution,  showing  that  thou- 
sands of  years  before  the  Christian  era  it 
had  already  given  rise  to  elaborate  systems 
of  theology.  All  of  these  religions  had  for 
their  dominant  object  the  worship  of  the 
procreative  powers  of  nature  as  symbolized 
by  the  generative  organs,  which  were  repre- 
sented in  images  and  emblems  of  the  great- 
est diversity  and  variety. 

Prominent  among  these  representations 
was  the  phallus,  which,  in  its  stricter  sense, 
has  reference  more  to  the  image  of  the  male 
organ  than  to  the  organ  itself.  These 
images,  in  exact  representation  of  the  mas- 
culine member,  were  very  common  among 
the  ancients.      They  were   made  in  every 


THE   PHALLUS.  43 

conceivable  variety  of  form  and  size,  many 
of  them  being  molded  in  plastic  material, 
and  others  carved  from  wood,  stone  and 
ivory.  Sometimes  they  represented  the 
organ  in  its  passive  state,  in  which  form  it 
was  generally  of  diminutive  size  and  worn 
as  an  amulet  by  the  women.  Such  amulets 
are  still  common  among  the  phallic  wor- 
shipers of  India,  many  of  them  being  of 
minute  size  and  made  of  gold,  silver,  ivory, 
crystal  or  sacred  wood.  These  are  worn 
upon  the  arm  or  breast  and  in  the  turban. 

The  most  common  form  of  these  phallic 
images,  however,  was  the  realistic  repre- 
sentation of  the  phallus  in  its  upright  posi- 
tion, in  which  shape  it  was  regarded  as 
more  clearly  exhibiting  the  divine  attribute 
of  the  Creator.  When  used  as  household 
idols  these  images  were  about  life-size,  but 
those  employed  in  religious  festivals  and 
in  the  temples  were  much  exaggerated, 
reaching  sometimes  to  a  height  of  twenty 
or  thirty  feet,  with  corresponding  propor- 
tions throughout. 

Many  of  the  Greek  and  Roman  temples, 
in   common   with   those   of   other   nations, 


44  SEX  WORSHIP. 

were  especially  dedicated  to  the  phallus, 
which  occupied  the  most  prominent  and 
holy  part  of  the  sacred  edifice,  and  received 
the  worship  and  adoration  of  the  devotees, 
who  presented  it  with  offerings  of  flowers 
and  wine,  and  prayed  to  it  as  the  hallowed 
representative  of  the  Creator. 

This  image  was  a  prominent  feature 
in  the  Bacchanalia  and  other  springtime 
festivals  of  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  in 
celebration  of  the  regeneration  of  life. 
On  these  occasions  the  women  repaired 
to  the  temples  of  this  idol,  and  there 
performed  the  mysteries  connected  with  its 
worship  as  the  representative  of  the  Divine 
Regenerator,  singing  the  while  hymns 
of  praise  to  the  deity,  and  anointing  the 
sacred  phallus  with  consecrated  wine,  be- 
sides wreathing  it  with  flowers  and  present- 
ing offerings  of  various  kinds. 

The  Roman  Liberalia,  which  were  held 
in  March,  were  a  festive  though  religious 
celebration  in  honor  of  Liber,  another  title 
of  Bacchus,  the  god  of  generative  power. 
This  was  an  occasion  of  general  rejoicing, 
and  was  not  confined  to  a  particular  place 


THE   PHALLUS.  45 

or  set  of  worshipers,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
Bacchanalian  mysteries,  but  was  observed 
by  the  people  in  all  parts  of  Italy  and  the 
Roman  provinces. 

The  phallus,  as  the  symbol  of  Bacchus, 
played  an  important  part  in  these  festivities. 
In  many  places  this  emblem  of  regenerated 
life  was  placed  in  a  chariot  and,  covered 
with  flowers  and  attended  by  a  merry  crowd 
of  men,  women  and  children,  was  drawn 
about  the  fields,  along  the  highways  and 
through  the  towns,  amid  the  rejoicings  and 
acclamations  of  the  people. 

In  some  of  the  towns  and  cities,  a  mag- 
nificent car  bearing  an  enormous  phallus, 
gaily  decorated,  was  slowly  drawn  through 
the  streets,  accompanied  by  a  great  proces- 
sion of  people,  and  in  this  manner  was 
borne  to  the  center  of  the  forum,  where  it 
came  to  a  halt.  The  most  respected  matron 
of  the  town,  as  worthy  of  the  post  of  honor, 
then  advanced  amid  the  joyous  shouts  of 
the  populace,  and  crowned  the  symbol  of 
the  deity  with  a  wreath  of  ivy. 

The   festival   of  Venus,   the   goddess   of 
love  and  regeneration,  was  celebrated  by 


46  SEX  WORSHIP. 

the  Roman  women  at  the  same  time  or  soon 
after  the  Liberalia.  This  celebration  was 
attended  with  rejoicings  and  merry-mak- 
ing, and  a  general  relaxation  of  the  strict 
rules  of  feminine  decorum.  In  the  formal 
ceremonies  of  the  occasion  the  ladies  pro- 
ceeded in  state  to  the  Quirinal,  the  hill  of 
Romulus,  where  stood  the  temple  contain- 
ing the  sacred  phallus.  This  holy  emblem 
was  taken  possession  of  by  the  women,  who 
then  formed  in  procession  and  reverently 
escorted  it  to  the  temple  of  Venus,  where 
they  presented  it  to  that  goddess  amid  elab- 
orate and  joyful  rites. 

This  ceremony  is  illustrated  by  a  design 
on  an  old  Roman  gem,  which  shows  a  tri- 
umphal chariot  bearing  an  altar  upon  which 
rests  a  colossal  phallus.  A  female  figure 
hovers  over  this  symbol  holding  a  crown  of 
flowers  above  it.  The  chariot,  which  is  un- 
der a  richly-decorated  canopy  supported  by 
four  semi-nude  women,  is  drawn  by  bulls 
and  goats,  ridden  by  winged  children  and 
preceded  by  a  band  of  women  blowing 
trumpets.  At  the  destination  of  the  proces- 
sion is  a  representation  of  a  vulva  upheld  by 


THE   PHALLUS.  47 

two  genii.  When  the  ceremony  was  com- 
pleted by  the  union  of  the  two  emblems, 
the  phallus  was  devoutly  carried  back  to 
its  temple. 

Smaller  images  of  the  phallus  were  fre- 
quently set  up  by  the  roadside,  in  front  of 
the  doors  of  dwellings  and  beneath  the 
trees  in  sacred  groves  and  woods.  The  spot 
on  which  this  holy  emblem  stood  was  re- 
garded as  hallowed  ground,  and  the  images 
received  the  same  pious  reverence  and  ado- 
ration as  is  to-day  paid  to  the  symbols  of 
Christianity. 

No  doubt,  many  of  the  devotees  regarded 
the  phallus  as  the  deity  itself,  even  as  is  the 
case  with  many  to-day  who  pray  to  the 
image  of  the  Virgin  or  the  crucified  Savior, 
yet  their  devotion  and  piety  were  none  the 
less  deep  and  sincere.  The  woman  who 
knelt  before  the  consecrated  image  of  the 
masculine  creative  power  and  prayed  for 
the  blessing  of  children,  was  as  earnest  and 
modest  as  is  the  Christian  woman  of  this 
day  who  invokes  a  similar  boon  from  the 
holy  Virgin  or  the  Father. 

The    chances    for    securing    fruitfulness 


48  SEX  WORSHIP. 

were  considered  better  if  the  prayer  was 
offered  while  in  contact  with  the  image,  and 
for  this  reason  it  was  customary  for  the  sup- 
pliants to  bare  themselves  and  sit  upon  the 
phallus  while  praying. 

This  rite  is  still  practised  in  certain  parts 
of  the  world  by  girls  and  women  of  all  ages 
and  stations,  for  the  purpose  of  invoking 
divine  aid.  In  oriental  villages  it  is  com- 
mon to  see  two  stones — one,  flat  and  circu- 
lar, the  other,  small,  smooth  and  upright — 
standing  near  together  in  some  secluded 
nook  or  grove.  The  suppliant  steps  upon 
the  circular  stone,  adjusts  her  drapery,  and, 
seating  herself  upon  the  upright  stone,  re- 
peats a  short  prayer  and  calls  upon  her  god 
for  some  desired  blessing. 

A  writer,  who  was  long  a  sojourner  in 
India,  relates  that  "  Many  a  day  have  I  sat 
at  early  dawn  in  the  door  of  my  tent, 
pitched  in  a  sacred  grove,  and  gazed  at  the 
little  group  of  females  stealthily  emerge 
from  the  adjoining,  half-sleeping  village, 
each  with  a  garland  or  bunch  of  flowers, 
and,  when  none  were  thought  to  see, 
accompany   their    prayer    for  pooli-palam 


THE   PHALLUS.  49 

(child-fruit)  with  a  respectful  abrasion  of  a 
certain  part  of  their  person  on  a  phallus." 

By  reason  of  its  sacredness  the  phallus 
was  considered  a  charm  against  evil  spirits 
and  it  is  occasionally  found  in  ancient 
tombs,  where  it  was  placed  to  guard  the 
dead  from  the  Evil  One.  A  remarkable 
instance  of  this  custom  was  discovered  not 
long  since  in  Egypt,  where  there  was  found 
at  Thebes  the  mummy  of  a  woman  of  rank 
with  whom  there  was  buried  the  embalmed 
phallus  of  a  bull. 

The  use  and  worship  of  phallic  images 
is  referred  to  in  the  most  ancient  records. 
In  the  book  of  Genesis  it  is  related  that 
when  Jacob  with  his  family  and  flocks  left 
the  house  of  Laban,  his  wife  Rachel  carried 
away   with   her   Laban's   terephim,   which 
were  small  images  of  men  with  the  phallus 
constituting   the   prominent   feature.     The 
sacred  importance  attached  to  these  images 
is  shown  by  the  fact  that  Laban  went  after 
Jacob,    and,    overtaking     his     son-in-law 
at    the    end    of     a     seven-day's     journey, 
asked,   "Wherefore   hast  thou   stolen   my 
gods  ?  "  and  Jacob,  not  knowing  that  his 


50  SEX  WORSHIP. 

wife  had  taken  them,  told  Laban  that  if  he 
found  the  images  on  any  one  of  his  people, 
that  person  should  be  put  to  death.  In 
order  not  to  be  discovered,  Rachel  sat  upon 
the  idols  "  and  said  to  her  father,  Let  it  not 
displease  my  lord  that  I  cannot  rise  before 
thee,  for  the  custom  of  women  is  upon  me. 
And  he  searched  and  found  not  the 
images." 

Again,  in  the  book  of  Judges  we  learn 
how  Micah  made  some  of  these  images  for 
himself  and  how  the  Danites  took  them 
from  him  and  worshiped  them  ;  and  in  the 
first  book  of  Kings  is  an  account  of 
Maachah,  the  queen  of  the  Israelites,  who 
was  deposed  because  she  made  a  phallic 
image  and  worshiped  it. 

In  fact,  the  Old  Testament  contains 
numerous  references  to  images  and  idols  of 
this  character  ;  nor  must  it  be  supposed 
that  the  use  of  such  emblems  is  peculiar  to 
the  remote  past  ;  for,  as  will  be  presently 
shown,  they  are  abundantly  general  in 
India  and  are  common  in  other  phallic- 
worshiping  nations  of  this  day  ;  as  in 
Dahomey,  for  example,  where  phallic  fig- 


THE   PHALLUS.  51 

ures  are  prominent  in  the  streets  of  every 
settlement. 

To  within  a  very  short  time  ago  they  fig- 
ured prominently  in  the  Christian  festival 
of  St.  Cosmo  and  Damiano,  at  Isernia  in 
Italy,  on  which  occasion  phallic  images  in 
wax  were  offered  to  the  priest  by  the  female 
devotees,  accompanied  by  prayers  for  mat- 
rimonial and  maternal  blessings.     A  similar 
custom  prevailed  in  certain  parts  of  France, 
where  these  wax  offerings  were  made  to 
St.  Foutin,  the  patron  saint  of  virility  ;  and 
as  a  further  evidence  of  the  existence  of 
modified  phallic  worship  in  connection  with 
Christianity  it  is  authoritatively  related  that 
at  Orange,  in  the  church  of  St.  Eutropius, 
was  a  phallus  made  of  wood  and  covered 
with  leather,  which  was  highly  venerated 
by  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  as  a  symbol 
of  the  saint,  whose  aid  was  sought  in  all 
matters  pertaining  to  the  generative  func- 
tions. 

The  phallus  was  frequently  pictured  on 
coins  and  in  sculpture  and  upon  vases  and 
other  articles,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  remains 
that  have  been  found  not  only  in  the  ancient 


52  SEX  WORSHIP. 

cities,  but  in  those  of  more  modern  times. 
Bas-reliefs  from  some  of  the  old  buildings 
in  France  show  singular  varieties  of  the 
phallus,  some  of  them  double  and  triple  and 
provided  with  wings,  claws,  beaks,  etc. 
One  is  bridled  and  ridden  by  a  sprite, 
another  is  shown  receiving  the  adoration 
of  female  devotees,  while  still  another  is 
depicted  standing  on  human  legs.  These, 
as  well  as  those  pictured  on  lamps  and  vases 
used  for  sacerdotal  purposes,  were  designed 
as  symbolical  of  religious  ideas. 

Numerous  examples  of  phallic-figured 
vases  and  dishes  have  been  found  in  Rome 
and  other  Italian  cities.  In  the  museum 
at  Portici,  for  example,  on  the  cover  of  an 
ancient  vase  that  had  been  used  for  sacred 
purposes,  is  a  large  phallus  which  is  being 
embraced  by  a  woman,  while  another  shows 
a  dealer  in  phalli  offering  a  basketful  of  his 
wares  to  a  group  of  women.  While  the 
religious  significance  of  such  designs  would 
scarcely  be  appreciated  at  this  day,  the  very 
fact  that  they  were  depicted  on  articles  used 
in  the  sanctuaries  is  evidence  of  the  sacred 
meaning  originally  attached  to  them. 


THE   PHALLUS.  53 

Under  its  Hindu  name  of  lingam  the 
phallus  is  still  universally  used  as  a  religious 
symbol  throughout  India,  where  phallic 
worship  has  flourished  unabated  for  thou- 
sands of  years.  The  lingam  is  the  divine 
symbol  of  Siva,  the  Reproducer,  the  third 
member  of  the  Hindu  creative  trinity,  and 
is  to  be  found  in  every  temple  dedicated  to 
his  worship.  It  is  generally  in  the  sanc- 
tum, or  holy  of  holies,  and  garlanded  with 
flowers  or  adorned  with  other  offerings. 
These  lingams  are  made  of  granite,  marble, 
ivory  and  precious  wood,  and  are  generally 
of  very  large  size,  some  reaching  to  the 
enormous  height  of  forty  feet  and  measur- 
ing twenty-five  feet  in  circumference. 

The  temples  of  the  lingam  are  to  be  seen 
in  great  numbers  on  the  banks  of  the 
Ganges,  especially  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Calcutta.  Their  presence  near  the  river 
invests  them  with  greater  sanctity  than  if 
built  in  the  interior  of  the  country,  the  river 
being  considered  particularly  sacred.  Con- 
nected with  nearly  every  one  of  these 
temples  is  a  small  house,  open  in  front,  for 
the  accommodation   of  the   devotees  who 


54  SEX  WORSHIP. 

come  there  to  die  in  sight  of  the  river.  The 
temples  occur  in  groups  of  eight  or  ten, 
while  at  some  places  as  many  as  a  hundred 
are  located  within  short  range  of  one 
another. 

The  priests  connected  with  these  tem- 
ples are  sworn  to  the  strictest  chastity, 
and  as  they  are  nude  while  officiating  any 
carnal  excitement  of  the  imagination  would 
manifest  itself  in  the  external  organs  and 
would  result  in  the  summary  stoning  of  the 
unfaithful  priest. 

While  the  lingams  in  the  temples  are  of 
gigantic  proportions,  those  used  for  domes- 
tic worship  are  but  a  few  inches  in  height  ; 
and,  as  before  stated,  this  emblem  in  dimin- 
utive size  is  worn  as  an  amulet  or  charm 
and  is  used  by  the  Hindoos  in  prayer  as 
the  pious  Catholic  uses  the  symbol  or  image 
of  his  patron  saint. 

The  worship  of  the  lingam  is  an  im- 
portant and  necessary  religious  rite,  and 
when  fully  and  properly  performed  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  prescribed  ritual,  is  a 
very  elaborate  ceremony,  consisting  of  six- 
teen essential  requisites,  including  a  prefa- 


THE   PHALLUS.  55 

tory  bath  of  purification  by  the  worshiper, 
the  bathing  of  the  lingam  with  clarified  but- 
ter, honey  and  the  juice  of  sugar  cane,  the 
offering  of  flowers,  incense,  lamps,  fruits 
and  various  kinds  of  prepared  edibles,  the 
repetition  of  prayers,  and  the  walking  about 
and  bowing  before  the  image. 

It    is    not    necessary    that    this    worship 
should  take  place  in  the  temple,  but  may  be 
performed  in  any  purified  place.     It  is  con- 
sidered most  efficacious  when  performed  on 
the  bank  of  a  holy  river  before  a  lingam 
formed  of  clay.       The  Hindoos  of  every 
caste  and  of  both  sexes  make  images  of  this 
symbol  with  the  clay  of  the  Ganges,  every 
morning  after  bathing,  and  worship  before 
them  ;    bowing,  presenting  offerings,  and 
repeating  incantations.     Upon  the  comple- 
tion of  the  ceremony  the  image  is  thrown 
into  the  river. 

Every  village  has  its  public  lingam, 
which  is  set  up  in  the  most  conspicuous  part 
of  the  town  as  a  talisman.  It  is  generally 
two  or  three  feet  in  height,  and  early  in  the 
morning  may  be  seen  the  girls  of  the  neigh- 
borhood, who   are  anxious  for   husbands, 


56  SEX  WORSHIP. 

sprinkling  the  emblem  with  water  from  the 
Ganges,  decking  it  with  garlands  of  flowers, 
and,  while  rubbing  themselves  against  it, 
reciting  the  prescribed  incantations  and  en- 
treating the  deity  to  make  them  fruitful 
mothers. 

A  common   and   more   realistic   method 
adopted  by  the  ancients  for  depicting  the 
symbol  of  the  male  procreative  power  was 
in  the  statue  or  representation  of  the  male 
figure,  either  entirely  nude  or  simply  ex- 
hibiting the  phallus,  which  was  generally  of 
unnaturally   large   size.     There   are   to   be 
seen  to   the  present   day  on  the   walls   of 
the  temples  at  Karnak  and  Thebes  phal- 
lic   designs    that    illustrate    how    intimate- 
ly   the    ideas    of    sexuality    and    religion 
were     interwoven     in     the    old     Egyptian 
civilization.       There  are  many  figures  of 
their  gods  and  kings  showing  them  pos- 
sessed  of   unusual   and   abundant    virility. 
These  pictures  also  represent  the  castration 
of  captives,  a  common  method  of  punish- 
ment among  the  ancients,  who  regarded  the 
absence  of  sexual  power  as  the  most  humili- 
ating disgrace  that  could  befall  a  man.   The 


THE   PHALLUS.  57 

Egyptian  god  Osiris  is  very  frequently  de- 
picted with  large  and  prominent  genitals,  as 
a  mark  of  his  divine  and  supreme  power, 
and  images  of  him  in  this  form  were  carried 
about  in  the  processions  connected  with  the 
religious  festivals  of  the  Egyptians. 

The  Roman  phallus-god  Priapus,  the 
deity  of  procreation,  was  always  repre- 
sented by  a  figure  of  this  kind,  and  as  the 
Romans  were  ardent  worshipers  of  Priapus 
and  introduced  the  worship  among  the 
peoples  with  whom  they  came  in  contact, 
images  and  statues  of  this  kind  are  not  rare 
in  the  various  ancient  towns  of  Italy  and 
other  parts  of  Europe.  Roman  coins, 
sculpturing,  and  engraved  stones,  or  gems, 
abound  in  representations  of  Priapus,  show- 
ing him  in  all  forms  and  attitudes  ;  some- 
times alone,  but  frequently  as  the  central 
figure  in  suggestive  scenes  or  unequivocal 
sexual  pastimes. 

These  priapic  images  were  objects  of 
reverential  worship  as  realistic  representa- 
tions of  the  creative  deity,  and  were  par- 
ticularly resorted  to  by  women  who  desired 
maternal     joys     and     by     newly     married 


58  SEX  WORSHIP. 

women,  who  were  required  to  sacrifice  their 
virginity  to  the  deity  through  the  medium 
of  his  holy  image. 

So  deep  was  the  faith  implanted  in  the 
common  mind  regarding  the  efficacy  of 
prayers  addressed  to  these  statues  of  the 
creative  deity,  that  the  worship  of  them  in 
certain  parts  of  France  continued  down  to 
within  a  comparatively  recent  time  ;  the 
only  difference  in  the  worship  being  that 
the  images  were  given  the  name  of  Chris- 
tian saints  instead  of  their  ancient  pagan 
name  of  Priapus. 

At  Bourg  Dieu,  near  Bourges,  the  in- 
habitants of  the  town  worshiped  one  of 
these  statues  that  had  existed  from  the  time 
of  the  Romans.  The  monks,  fearing  to  put 
an  end  to  this  old-established  religious 
practice,  converted  the  ancient  god  into  St. 
Greluchon,  and  barren  women  flocked  to 
the  abbey  to  implore  the  saint's  aid  and  to 
celebrate  a  novena  in  his  honor.  The  de- 
votee would  stretch  herself  at  full  length  on 
this  figure,  which  was  laid  upon  the  floor, 
and  would  then  scrape  some  particles  from 
the   phallus,   and  these   particles   in   water 


THE   PHALLUS.  59 

were  supposed   to   constitute  a  miraculous 
beverage. 

St.  Giles,  in  Brittany,  St.  Rene,  in  Anjou, 
and  St.  Regnand  and  St.  Arnaud  were  simi- 
larly worshiped  ;  though  in  the  case  of  the 
latter  a  mystic  apron  usually  shrouded  the 
symbol  of  fecundity,  and  was  only  raised  in 
favor  of  sterile  devotees.  Its  mere  inspec- 
tion, if  accompanied  with  true  faith,  was 
said  to  be  sufficient  to  effect  miracles. 

St.  Foutin  was  one  of  the  most  popular  of 
the  saints  to  whom  were  ascribed  the  power 
of  procreation.     Statues  to  him  were  com- 
mon in  various  parts  of  France,  and  he  was 
the  recipient  of  many  prayers  and  offerings, 
for  he  was  said  to  have  not  only  the  gift  of 
relieving  barren  women,  but  of  restoring 
exhausted  vitality   and   curing   secret   dis- 
eases.      His   worship,  therefore,   was   not 
confined  to  the  female  devotees,  but  was 
shared  equally  by  the  men,  who  would  de- 
voutly present  to  the  priests,  as  offerings  to 
the  saint,  wax  images  of  the  affected  parts, 
in  the  pious  and  sincere  belief  that  by  this 
holy  means  they  would  be  cured. 


60  SEX  WORSHIP. 

Among  the  remains  of  a  church  at  Em- 
brun  was  found  the  phallus  of  a  statue  of 
this  saint,  which  was  stained  a  deep  red  as 
the  result  of  the  custom  of  pouring  wine 
upon  it.  The  anointment  of  the  image  in 
this  manner  was  a  common  practice  in  con- 
nection with  the  worship  of  the  saint  ;  the 
wine  thus  used  being  caught  in  a  jar  and 
allowed  to  turn  sour,  when,  under  the  name 
of  "  holy  vinegar,"  it  was  drunk  by  the 
women  as  an  effective  and  infallible  means 
of  producing  fertility. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

PHALLIC   EMBLEMS. 

While  statues  of  Priapus  and  images  of 
the  phallus  are  found  in  great  abundance 
in  the  remains  of  the  ancient  world,  and 
while  they  were  no  doubt  extensively  used 
at  all  times,  they  cannot  compare  in  num- 
bers and  importance  with  the  modified  and 
conventional  forms  of  the  creative  symbol 
that  we  find  scattered  all  over  the  world,  in 
endless  numbers  and  variety,  and  unknow- 
ingly preserved  by  us  to-day  in  our  archi- 
tecture, our  symbols  and  our  customs. 
Realistic  representations  of  the  masculine 
generative  symbol  became  very  readily 
modified  into  more  formal  shapes,  which 
were  adopted  and  retained,  either  for  the 
sake  of  convenience,  because  they  could  be 
more  easily  made,  or  for  the  reason  that 
they  could  be  better  adapted  to  certain 
ceremonial  uses. 

Pre-eminent  among  this  class  of  phallic 
emblems  is  the  pillar.     It  is  not  difficult  to 


62  SEX  WORSHIP. 

understand  how  the  large  upright  phallus 
became  modified  into  the  conventional  form 
of  a  pillar.  In  fact,  many  of  the  large  phalli 
were  really  nothing  more  than  pillars,  and 
hence  a  plain  pillar,  either  of  wood  or  stone, 
was  adopted  as  a  symbol  of  the  procreative 
power.  It  was  easily,  cheaply  and  readily 
constructed,  and  as  its  general  form  was 
plainly  suggestive  of  the  object  it  repre- 
sented, it  is  not  surprising  that  it  became 
one  of  the  most  popular  and  most  numerous 
of  phallic  emblems. 

Remains  of  stone  pillars  as  symbols  of 
the  deity  are  found  in  all  parts  of  the  world. 
They  are  numerous  throughout  Europe,  the 
British  Isles  and  America,  while  in  Egypt 
and  in  India  and  other  Asiatic  countries, 
they  abound  in  the  greatest  profusion.  The 
marvelous  Egyptian  obelisks  are  nothing 
more  nor  less  than  large  pillars,  phallic  em- 
blems, erected  in  honor  of  the  Creator  and 
his  divine  attribute.  Indeed,  all  ancient 
structures  of  this  kind — pillars,  columns, 
obelisks  and  monuments — are  of  phallic 
significance  and  owe  their  existence  to  re- 


PHALLIC  EMBLEMS.  63 

ligious  motives  and  the  devout  endeavor  on 
the  part  of  mankind  to  honor  the  Creator. 

The  use  of  the  pillar  in  one  form  or  an- 
other was  very  extensive.  Remains  of  this 
emblem  in  all  parts  of  Europe  and  in 
England,  Scotland  and  Ireland  bear  evi- 
dence of  the  fact  that  phallic  worship  was 
not  confined  to  certain  localities  or  peoples, 
but  was  general  and  played  a  dominant  part 
in  the  religion  of  the  Scandinavians,  the 
Teutons,  the  Saxons,  the  Celts,  the  Gauls, 
and  the  Britons,  besides  that  of  the  Romans 
and  the  Greeks.  To  catalogue  and  explain 
the  monuments  and  remains  of  phallicism 
that  have  been  found  in  Great  Britain 
would  alone  require  a  large  volume. 

Stone  phalli  in  the  form  of  pillars  are  com- 
mon in  the  temples  of  China  and  Japan, 
and,  in  fact,  among  all  the  oriental  nations. 
Passing  to  the  western  hemisphere,  we  find 
that  phallicism,  as  represented  by  this  em- 
blem, was  almost  universal  among  the 
primitive  and  prehistoric  races  of  both  con- 
tinents. In  Yucatan  a  phallic  pillar  stands 
in  front  of  the  door  of  every  temple.  In 
Peru  have  been  found  numerous  examples 


64  SEX  WORSHIP. 

of  this  symbol,  together  with  ancient  clay 
phalli,  and  water  jars  on  which  are  figured 
gods  and  goddesses  of  procreation  ;  their 
functions  and  attributes  being  prominently 
portrayed.  In  the  center  of  the  great 
square  of  the  temple  of  the  sun  at  Cuzco 
the  early  European  explorers  found  a  stone 
idol,  shaped  like  a  sugar  loaf  and  covered 
with  gold  leaf,  which  was  the  object  of 
special  veneration  on  the  part  of  the  popu- 
lace ;  and  in  Brazil  have  been  found  similar 
indications  of  the  primitive  worship  of  the 
generative  powers. 

In  Polynesia  pillars  are  made  of  straw,  a 
custom  which  is  also  practised  in  India, 
especially  in  harvest  time,  when  pillars  and 
human  figures  exhibiting  both  sexes  very 
conspicuously  are  made  and  set  up  in  the 
fields  as  objects  of  adoration  and  worship. 

In  ancient  times  stone  pillars  were  erected 
at  the  cross  roads,  at  boundaries,  in  the 
market  places,  before  the  doors  of  houses 
and  in  the  temples  and  churches,  as  the 
presence  of  this  holy  emblem  was  supposed 
to  consecrate  the  place  in  which  it  stood, 
and  to  guard  it  against  evil  spirits.     For  a 


PHALLIC   EMBLEMS.  05 

similar  reason  stone  pillars  and  shafts 
(symbols  of  the  guardian  Creator)  were 
placed  upon  graves, — a  practice  that  has 
been  retained  to  this  day  in  the  civilized 
world  ;  for  do  we  not  continue  to  mark  the 
resting  -  places  of  our  departed  ones  with 
monuments  and  columns  and  other  upright 
stones  ? 

We  have  ample  proof  in  the  Bible  that 
the  pillar  was  regarded  as  a  sacred  emblem 
of  the  Creator,  for  it  will  be  remembered 
that  the  setting  up  of  a  pillar  as  a  witness 
to  the  Lord  was  a  common  practice  among 
the  Hebrews,  and  that  it  was  always  an  oc- 
casion of  reverential  ceremonies.  "  In  that 
day  there  shall  be  an  altar  to  the  Lord  in 
the  midst  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  a  pillar 
at  the  border  thereof  to  the  Lord  ;  and  it 
shall  be  for  a  sign  and  for  a  witness  unto 
the  Lord."     (Isaiah  19:    19.) 

Those  acquainted  with  the  Old  Testa- 
ment cannot  but  be  impressed  with  the 
sacredness  attached  to  pillars,  and  the  nu- 
merous instances  in  which  they  are  men- 
tioned in  connection  with  the  Lord,  either 
as  emblems  of  the  Creator  or  as  witnesses 


66  SEX  WORSHIP. 

to  him.  They  are  frequently  referred  to  as 
altars  and  rocks,  which,  as  will  presently 
be  shown,  are  but  modified  forms  of  the 
pillar,  and  equally  significant. 

Jacob  set  up  a  pillar  and  poured  oil  upon 
it,  calling  the  place  Bethel, — the  house  of 
God.  He  also  set  up  a  stone  pillar,  in  obe- 
dience to  God's  command  to  build  an  altar, 
and  poured  upon  it  oil  and  a  drink  offering 
of  wine  ;  a  common  method  of  anointing 
phallic  symbols,  and  practised  by  the  peo- 
ple of  all  nations  when  making  offerings  to 
the  creative  deity.  Likewise,  when  his  wife 
Rachel  died  he  set  a  pillar  upon  her  grave, 
in  accordance  with  the  custom  previously 
alluded  to. 

We  find,  also,  that  Joshua,  when  about  to 
die,  took  a  great  stone  and  set  it  up  under 
an  oak  that  was  near  the  sanctuary  of  the 
Lord,  "  and  Joshua  said  unto  all  the  people, 
Behold,  this  stone  shall  be  a  witness  unto 
us,  for  it  hath  heard  all  the  words  of  the 
Lord  which  he  spake  unto  us  :  it  shall  be 
therefore  a  witness  unto  you,  lest  ye  deny 
your  God."  The  Lord  looked  upon  the 
Egyptians  through  a  pillar  of  fire  ;   he  led 


PHALLIC   EMBLEMS.  67 

the  Israelites  by  pillars  of  cloud  and  fire, 
and  he  appeared  to  them  in  a  pillar  of 
cloud  ;  — records  that  are  all  illustrative  of 
the  divine  significance  of  the  pillar. 

Not  only  was  this  emblem  recognized 
and  used  as  significant  of  the  Creator,  but 
the  Lord  is  frequently  alluded  to  as  a  Pillar, 
or  a  Rock;  showing  conclusively  the  sacred 
meaning  attached  to  the  symbol.  Thus, 
Jacob  refers  to  Jehovah  as  "  The  Stone  of 
Israel  ;"  while  David  calls  him  his  "  Rock," 
and  Moses  several  times  uses  this  emblem- 
atical term  ;  its  phallic  significance  being 
especially  clear  in  the  18th  verse  of  the 
thirty-second  chapter  of  Deuteronomy, 
where  he  says  :  "  Of  the  Rock  that  begat 
thee  thou  art  unmindful,  and  hast  forgotten 
God  that  formed  thee."  Equally  clear  is 
the  expression  of  Hannah,  who  in  her 
prayer  of  thanksgiving  to  the  Lord  for  hav- 
ing given  her  a  child,  says  :  "  Neither  is 
there  any  Rock  like  our  God." 

As  the  vast  majority  of  pillars  were  made 
of  stone,  or  consisted  simply  of  unhewn 
rocks  set  up  on  end,  it  is  not  difficult  to 
perceive  how  the  "  rock  "  and  the  "  pillar  " 


68  SEX  WORSHIP. 

became  interchangeable  terms  ;  the  one  as 
symbolical  and  significant  as  the  other.  By 
an  extension  of  the  analogy,  mere  stones, 
without  any  particular  likeness  to  pillars, 
became  emblematical  of  the  Creator,  espe- 
cially when  piled  in  a  heap  ;  such  stone 
heaps  being  a  very  common  form  of  the 
phallic  symbol.  In  the  thirty-first  chap- 
ter of  Genesis  we  read  that  "  Jacob  took  a 
stone  and  set  it  up  for  a  pillar,  and  Jacob 
said  unto  his  brethren,  Gather  stones  ;  and 
they  took  stones  and  made  an  heap.  And 
Laban  said  to  Jacob,  Behold  this  heap,  and 
behold  this  pillar.  This  heap  be  a  witness 
and  this  pillar  be  a  witness,"  etc. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  altar  was  an  elab- 
oration of  the  pillar  ;  a  change  that  resulted 
from  the  practice  of  making  offerings  to  the 
phallus  or  pillar  that  was  in  the  temple.  In 
the  desire  to  place  the  offerings  upon  the 
sacred  symbol,  its  form  was  gradually  mod- 
ified so  as  to  better  accommodate  them,  and 
the  result  was  the  altar  ;  an  object  still  re- 
garded with  holy  reverence,  and  still  form- 
ing the  principal  feature  of  every  place  of 
worship. 


PHALLIC  EMBLEMS.  69 

As  in  the  case  of  the  altar,  so  the  pillar 
became  modified  in  various  other  ways,  one 
of  which  resulted  in  giving  to  the  pole  a 
sacred  and  phallic  significance.  In  fact,  our 
word  pole  is  derived  from  phallus,  which 
is  itself  a  derivative  of  the  Phenician  word 
meaning  "  he  breaks  through  or  passes  in- 
to." The  modern  Maypole  festivities  are 
simply  a  continuation  of  some  ancient  phal- 
lic celebration,  in  which  the  pole,  as  a  sym- 
bol of  the  reproductive  powers,  was  decor- 
ated with  flowers,  while  the  worshipers 
danced  about  it  singing  songs  of  joy  and 
praise. 

The  principal  outgrowth  of  the  pillar  was 
the  tower.  In  truth,  this  symbol  was  but  a 
further  enlargement  and  elaboration  of  the 
phallus  image.  In  addition  to  consecrating 
a  temple  of  worship  by  placing  within  it  a 
symbol  of  the  Deity,  the  temple  itself  was 
built  in  the  shape  of  the  symbol,  as  far  as 
possible,  and  this  resulted  in  the  erection 
of  towers  ;  remains  of  which  are  still  to  be 
seen  in  various  parts  of  the  world,  espe- 
cially in  Great  Britain.  They  were  built  of 
stone,  and  because  of  their  circular  shape 


70  SEX  WORSHIP. 

are  to-day  known  as  "  Round  Towers,"  the 
most  noteworthy  examples  of  which  are 
those  found  in  Ireland,  where  these  ancient 
phallic  structures  abound  in  great  numbers, 
having  been  built  by  phallic-worshiping  ref- 
ugees from  ancient  Persia.  These  towers 
vary  in  height  from  fifty  to  one  hundred 
and  fifty  feet,  measuring  about  fourteen  feet 
in  diameter  at  the  base,  and  decreasing 
gradually  toward  the  top.  Some  are  sur- 
mounted with  a  conical-shape  roof,  while 
others  terminate  in  a  point,  and  thus  resem- 
ble huge  steeples  standing  alone.  But  in  all 
their  variety  of  forms,  the  suggestiveness  of 
their  design  is  always  evident. 

We  have  every  evidence  that  such  phal- 
lic towers  were  common  in  all  parts  of  the 
ancient  world  ;  but  in  course  of  time  these 
necessarily  circumscribed  edifices  gave 
place  to  more  commodious  forms  of  archi- 
tecture, though  the  tower  in  some  one  of  its 
various  forms  was  always  retained  as  the 
principal  and  consecratory  feature  of  a  reli- 
gious building  ;  and  to  this  day,  through- 
out all  Christendom,  the  houses  of  religious 
worship  are  distinguished  in  this  manner. 


PHALLIC   EMBLEMS.  71 

A  church  is  not  considered  complete 
without  its  steeple  or  tower,  but  little  is  it 
realized  that  this  important  and  distinguish- 
ing feature  of  church  architecture  is  a  repre- 

o 

sentation  of  the  primitive  symbol  of  the 
Creator,  and  that  its  original  function  was 
to  hallow  the  place  in  which  the  deity  of 
procreation  was  worshiped.  In  no  ancient 
city  could  the  phallic  symbols  of  the  Al- 
mighty have  been  more  prominently  and 
widely  displayed  than  they  are  to-day  in 
every  Christian  town,  with  its  multitude  of 
lofty  steeples  and  spires  towering  above  the 
housetops,  in  glorious,  though  unconscious, 
symbolization  of  the  Creator. 

Many  other  artificial  and  conventional 
emblems  used  in  ancient  times  for  the  rep- 
resentation of  the  procreative  deity  might 
be  cited;  as  the  arrow,  the  shepherd's  crook, 
the  three-pointed  wand,  which  has  become 
the  fleur-de-lis  of  modern  times,  and  a  great 
many  more  ;  but  they  are  of  minor  impor- 
tance compared  with  the  pillar  and  the 
tower,  and  with  the  numerous  natural  ob- 
jects that  were  chosen  as  phallic  symbols 
by  reason  of  some  supposed  resemblance  or 


72  SEX  WORSHIP. 

relation  to  the  phallus,  in  its  looks,  charac- 
ter or  attributes.  Thus,  any  high  rock,  or 
mount,  or  other  towering  elevation  was 
vested  with  sacred  significance,  and  ancient 
history  abounds  with  references  to  "  holy 
mounts,"  or  "  mounts  of  God." 

Trees,  too,  were  regarded  as  sacred  em- 
blems of  the  Creator  and  his  attributes. 
Some,  like  the  pine  and  the  fir,  because  of 
their  straightness  and  uprightness  ;  others, 
like  the  oak,  because  of  their  strength  and 
vitality  ;  and  others,  again,  like  the  fig  and 
the  palm,  because  of  the  shape  of  their 
leaves  or  the  venereal  effect  of  their  fruit. 
Hence,  we  find  that  tree  worship,  as  a  mode 
of  phallicism,  flourished  very  extensively  in 
the  early  history  of  the  world  ;  the  worship 
of  the  oak  by  the  Druids  being  a  familiar 
example,  and  all  early  records  contain  allu- 
sions to  certain  kinds  of  trees  and  fruits  as 
possessed  of  particular  religious  or  phallic 
significance. 

Various  animals  were  likewise  adopted 
as  suggestive  symbols  of  the  male  creative 
energy,  particularly  those  of  unusual  sex- 
ual power.    The  cock,  the  goat  and  the  bull 


PHALLIC   EMBLEMS.  73 

figure  very  largely  in  phallic  worship  as 
worthy  representatives  of  the  procreative 
god  ;  the  goat  and  the  bull  being  especial- 
ly sacred  to  the  Egyptians,  who  looked 
upon  these  animals  as  not  only  the  living 
symbols  of  Osiris,  the  Creator,  but  as  his 
actual  incarnations,  and  were  accordingly 
treated  and  worshiped  as  veritable  deities. 
The  sacred  bull,  as  an  incarnation  of  the 
procreative  power  of  nature,  is  a  feature  of 
many  of  the  Hindoo  temples,  where  the 
animal  is  waited  upon  and  adored  with  due 
reverence  and  solemnity. 

The  goat  is  perhaps  the  most  salacious 
of  all  animals, his  inexhaustible  appetite  and 
virility  enabling  him  to  mate  with  as  many 
as  eighty  ewes  in  a  single  night,  and  it  is 
not  surprising  that  such  extraordinary  abil- 
ities should  have  appealed  to  the  impress- 
ible mind  of  early  man  as  a  manifestation 
of  the  infinite  powers  of  the  Supreme  Pro- 
creator  himself,  and  that  he  should  have 
been  chosen  as  a  specially  sacred  symbol. 

This  animal  figured  very  prominently  in 
many  of  the  religious  celebrations,  and 
down   to  the   present  time   has   been   em- 


74  SEX  WORSHIP. 

ployed  in  the  initiation  ceremonies  of  secret 
orders,  as  he  was  in  the  mystic  rites  of  the 
ancient  Egyptians,  in  which  the  priests 
were  required  to  be  initiated  into  the  mys- 
teries of  the  Goat  before  they  could  be  ad- 
mitted to  the  divine  knowledge  of  Isis. 
These  mysteries  were  so  sacred  and  so 
zealously  guarded  by  the  few  initiates,  that 
very  little  is  really  known  concerning  them. 

The  Greeks  idealized  the  goat  in  their 
god  Pan  and  his  voluptuous  attendants,  the 
fauns  and  satyrs  ;  creatures  half  man  and 
half  goat.  Pan  was  the  patron  deity  of  sen- 
sual pastimes,  and  representations  of  him 
depict  him  as  worthy  of  the  highest  honor 
on  this  score. 

Among  the  Hindoos  the  tortoise  is  an 
important  phallic  emblem.  This  animal 
was  probably  chosen  as  a  sacred  represent- 
ative of  the  creative  deity  because  of  its 
fabled  androgyny, —  an  attribute  of  the 
Creator  which  will  be  considered  in  another 
place, — and  because  of  its  great  tenacity  of 
life  and  fecundity.  Furthermore,  the  fre- 
quency and  rapidity  with  which  it  protrudes 
and  withdraws  its  head,  changing  from  an 


PHALLIC  EMBLEMS.  75 

appearance  of  repose  to  one  of  energy  and 
action,  as  well  as  the  shape  of  its  head  and 
neck  when  aroused,  readily  suggested  to 
the  imaginative  phallic-worshiper  the  act- 
ive lingam,  or  masculine  creative  symbol. 

Among  the  more  important  natural  em- 
blems adopted  by  the  Egyptians  was  the 
river  Nile,  which  symbolized  the  outpour- 
ing, the  fertilizing  and  creative  force,  of 
Osiris,  and  its  waters  were  regarded  with 
the  same  holy  veneration  that  characterizes 
the  worship  of  the  river  Ganges  by  the  peo- 
ple of  India  to-day. 

But  foremost  of  all  natural  emblems  of 
the  creative  deity  was  the  sun  ;    nay,  the 
sun  was  the  Creator  himself,  the  Almighty 
God.     It  was  he  who  gave  light  and  life  to 
the  world  ;  upon  him  all  existence  depend- 
ed.   Osiris  dwelt  in  the  Sun  as  the  omnipo- 
tent  Creator,  and  through  this  all-potent 
medium  manifested  his  powers  to  mankind. 
All  of  the  ancient  supreme  gods  were  close- 
ly allied  with  the  sun.     It  was  either  the 
Deity  himself  or  his  glorious  and  almighty 
manifestation.      The  worship   of  the   sun, 
therefore,    necessarily    formed    a    part,— a 


7&  SEX  WORSHIP. 

very  important  and  significant  part, —  of 
phallic  worship.  In  the  adoration  of  the 
sun  as  the  Creator  and  Preserver  of  man- 
kind lies  the  origin  of  a  universal  theologi- 
cal belief, — a  belief  that  belongs  to  no  one 
sect  or  age  alone,  but  has  been  in  exis- 
tence and  has  been  the  foundation  of  relig- 
ious faiths  since  the  time  man  first  beheld 
the  wonders  of  the  universe,  and  watched 
with  anxious  and  reverential  solicitude  the 
annual  journey  of  the  Sun  ;  saw  with  dis- 
may and  fear  the  world  grow  cold  and  dead 
in  the  absence  of  the  great  Life-giver  in  the 
winter  season,  and  welcomed  with  joy  and 
acclamations  of  praise  the  renewal,  the 
resurrection  of  life,  as  the  Sun,  the 
Almighty  Father  and  Savior,  appeared 
again  in  all  his  glory  and  radiance  of  power. 


CHAPTER   V. 

SEXUAL  SACRIFICES. 

While  the  world  at  large  has  always  re- 
garded sexual  power  or  virility  as  a  divine 
o-ift    to  be  cherished  and  exercised  in  ac- 
cordance   with   its   sacred   and   mysterious 
purpose,  and  has  looked  upon  the  act  of 
generation  as  not  only  proper  and  neces- 
sary, but  as  a  holy  and  divinely  ordained 
function   for    the   accomplishment   of    the 
supreme  purpose  of  life,  there  has  always 
been  in  human  society  a  small  but  powerful 
religious  element  that  insists  upon  an  abne- 
gation of  the  sexual  nature,  as  the  only  true 
condition    for   a    proper   communion   with 

God. 

Hence,  we  find  in  all  times  and  among  all 
peoples  certain  religious  cults  whose  priests 
or  leaders  are  required  to  abstain  from  all 
sexual  affairs.  Among  the  ancients  this 
rule  was  not  confined  to  mere  continence 
or  celibacy,  but  was  often  extended  to 
actual  emasculation  of  the  priests  ;  a  cus- 
tom that  attained  its  greatest  prominence 


78  SEX  WORSHIP. 

in  Phrygia,  an  ancient  province  of  Asia 
Minor,  because  of  the  extraordinary  cere- 
monies there  attendant  upon  the  act  of  cas- 
tration. These  ceremonies  formed  a  part 
of  the  annual  celebration  of  the  festival  of 
Attis  and  Cybele  ;  the  latter  being  the  earth 
goddess  or  mother  deity,  who  fell  in  love 
with  the  beautiful  youth  Attis,  of  whom  she 
exacted  a  vow  of  chastity  as  her  priest,  but 
who,  having  broken  his  vow  for  the  sake  of 
a  lovely  nymph,  was  deprived  by  the  god- 
dess of  his  reason,  and  in  his  frenzy  he  cas- 
trated himself  ;  whereupon  the  goddess  or- 
dained that  thereafter  all  her  priests  should 
be  eunuchs. 

In  commemoration  of  this  legend,  there 
was  held  each  year,  in  the  springtime,  a 
wild  and  noisy  though  at  the  same  time 
sacred  and  solemn  festival.  It  began  in 
quiet  and  sorrow  for  the  death-like  sleep  of 
Attis.  On  the  third  day  joy  broke  forth 
and  was  manifested  by  delirious  hilarity. 
The  frenzied  priests  of  Cybele  rushed  about 
in  bands,  with  haggard  eyes  and  disheveled 
hair,  like  drunken  revelers  and  insane 
women.     In  one  hand  they  carried  burning 


SEXUAL  SACRIFICES.  79 

fire-brands  and  in  the  other  they  brandished 
the  sacred  knife.  They  dashed  into  the 
woods  and  valleys  and  climbed  the  moun- 
tain heights,  keeping  up  a  horrible  noise 
and  continual  groaning.  An  intoxicating 
drink  rendered  them  wild.  They  beat  each 
other  with  the  chains  they  carried,  and 
when  they  drew  blood  upon  their  com- 
panions or  themselves  they  danced  with 
wild  and  tumultuous  gesticulations,  flog- 
ging their  backs  and  piercing  their  limbs 
and  even  their  bodies.  Finally,  in  honor  of 
their  goddess,  they  turned  the  sacred  knife 
upon  their  genitals,  and  calling  upon  their 
deity  showed  their  gaping  wounds,  and 
offered  her  the  spoils  of  their  de- 
stroyed virility.  After  recovering  from 
this  self-inflicted  emasculation,  these  ini- 
tiates adopted  woman's  dress,  and  were 
then  ready  to  become  priests  or,  failing  in 
that,  to  take  their  place  among  the  attend- 
ants of  the  temple,  to  engage  in  pederasty 
for  the  benefit  of  the  temple  treasury,  when- 
ever the  patrons  might  prefer  such  indul- 
gence to  that  afforded  by  the  consecrated 
women, 


&>  SEX  WORSHIP. 

The  motive  for  sexual  sacrifices  of  this 
kind  is  probably  to  be  found  in  the  desire 
to  resemble  the  Deity  in  his  androgynous 
character.  As  will  be  shown,  there  were 
numerous  religious  faiths  in  which  it  was 
held  that  the  creative  deity  combined  in 
himself  both  the  male  and  female  principles, 
and  as  the  ultimate  aim  of  the  priesthood 
has  ever  been  to  attain  to  a  resemblance  to 
or  a  union  with  God,  it  is  but  reasonable 
that  such  a  method  should  have  been 
adopted  by  certain  sects.  A  castrated  priest 
was  neither  man  nor  woman  ;  and  yet, 
paradoxically,  he  was  both.  In  form  and 
figure  he  represented  the  male  principle, 
while  in  dress  and  in  the  absence  of  the  ac- 
tive masculine  functions,  he  represented 
the  female. 

In  some  instances,  however,  and  particu- 
larly in  later  times,  this  motive  gave  place 
to  one  of  another  character,  and  this  was 
the  desire  to  please  and  propitiate  the 
Almighty  by  sacrificing  the  greatest  of 
human  blessings  and  pleasures,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  old  and  widespread  belief  that 
God  is  always  best  pleased  when  his  crea- 


SEXUAL  SACRIFICES.  8l 

tures  are  most  miserable  ;  and  hence,  the 
greater  the  sacrifice,  the  greater  the  pleas- 
ure afforded  him. 

Castration  is  practised  by  many  religions 
fanatics  even  at  the  present  day,  and  is  pre- 
scribed as  a  fundamental  tenet  of  a  certain 
sect  of  Christians  in  Russia,  who  hold  that 
the  millennium  will  not  arrive  until  all  the 
men  of  the  world  are  castrated.  Conse- 
quently, this  sect  is  composed  entirely  of 
self-made  eunuchs,  and  hundreds  of  con- 
verts annually  butcher  themselves  in  this 
manner.  Their  authority  for  this  practice 
is  found  in  the  twelfth  verse  of  the  nine- 
teenth chapter  of  Matthew,  wherein  Christ 
says  unto  his  disciples,  "  There  are  some 
eunuchs  which  were  so  born  from  their 
mother's  womb  ;  and  there  are  some 
eunuchs  which  were  made  eunuchs  of  men; 
and  there  be  eunuchs  which  have  made 
themselves  eunuchs  for  the  kingdom  of 
heaven's  sake." 

In  the  history  of  Christianity  this  passage 
has  not  infrequently  been  the  inciting  cause 
of  sexual  sacrifices,  but  the  chief  motive  for 
sacrifices  of  this  nature  has  been  the  en- 


82  SEX  WORSHIP. 

deavor  to  give  up  all  worldly  delights  and 
vain  enjoyments,  as  incompatible  with  a 
proper  worship  of  God.  Hence,  the 
struggles  of  the  early  Christian  fathers  and 
devotees  and  of  the  many  who  have  fol- 
lowed in  their  footsteps  down  to  the  present 
day,  to  resist  the  promptings  of  the  flesh,  in 
order  to  attain  to  a  pure,  spiritual  com- 
munion with  God. 

This  did  not  necessarily  imply  castration; 
yet  there  were  many  (among  whom  was 
Origen,  one  of  the  most  famous  of  the  early 
fathers)  who  resorted  to  it  as  the  only 
means  of  successfully  subduing  the  tempta- 
tions of  the  devil.  The  majority  sought  to 
accomplish  their  purpose  by  taking  vows  of 
absolute  continence  ;  and  the  greater  the 
struggles  they  endured,  the  greater  was 
their  triumph  and  spiritual  satisfaction. 
That  the  faithful  did  suffer  by  thus  abso- 
lutely abstaining  from  the  gratification  of 
their  natural  desires  and  appetites,  is  well 
attested  by  history  and  by  the  well-known 
physiological  fact,  that  absolute  continence 
is  attended  with  mental  and  physical  de- 
rangements as  painful  and  as  disastrous  as 


SEXUAL  SACRIFICES.  83 

those  resulting  from  the  most  intemperate 
indulgence. 

This  mode  of  sexual  sacrifice,  in  its  modi- 
fied form  of  celibacy,  as  a  sacerdotal  re- 
quirement, still  constitutes  a  prominent 
feature  of  the  tenets  and  church  govern- 
ment of  a  large  part  of  the  Christian  world. 

Sexual  offerings  to  the  deities  were  not 
confined  alone  to  masculine  devotees,  for  it 
was  a  common  religious  ordinance  in  many 
of  the  ancient  nations,  that  every  woman 
should  sexually  sacrifice  herself  to  the  gods; 
not,  however,  by  any  act  of  mutilation,  but 
by  permitting  herself  to  be  embraced  by  a 
patron  of  the  temple. 

Whenever  a  woman  desired  to  per- 
form this  religious  duty  she  repaired 
to  the  temple  and  placed  herself  under 
a  suspended  branch  of  mistletoe,  which 
was  the  customary  mode  of  indicating 
that  she  was  at  the  service  of  the  first 
stranger  who  desired  to  take  advantage  of 
the  opportunity  ;  a  custom  which,  in  its 
modified  form  of  kissing  under  the  mistle- 
toe, is  retained  to  this  day  and  is  familiar  to 
all  of  us  as  a  feature  of  Christmas  festivi- 
ties. 


84  SEX  WORSHIP. 

The  temple  of  Mylitta,  at  Babylon,  was 
particularly  noted  for  the  sacrifices  of  this 
kind  that  were  made  there,  and  the  follow- 
ing- account  of  the  manner  in  which  the 
rites  were  conducted  is  taken  from  the  de- 
scription given  by  Herodotus  : 

"  Every  native-born  woman  is  obliged  at 
sometime  in  her  life  to  go  to  the  Temple 
of  Mylitta  and  submit  her  person  to  the 
embraces  of  a  strange  man.  Many  of  the 
more  wealthy,  who  disdain  to  be  con- 
founded with  the  commonalty,  have  them- 
selves carried  to  the  temple  in  covered 
chairs.  There  they  keep  their  seats  with  a 
following  of  many  domestics  who  have 
accompanied  them.  But  the  majority  of 
the  women,  who  wear  on  their  heads  a 
circlet  made  of  cord,  settle  themselves  in  a 
certain  part  of  the  grounds  that  pertain  to 
the  temple.  There  is  a  constant  stream  of 
women  arriving  and  departing.  The 
men  strangers  walk  up  and  down  the  pas- 
sageways formed  by  stretched  ropes,  and 
pick  out  the  women  who  best  please  them. 
A  woman  having  once  entered  cannot  re- 
turn home  until  a  man,  with  whom  she  has 


SEXUAL  SACRIFICES.  85 

had   no   carnal   intercourse   before,   kneels 
and  throws  to  her  a  piece  of  silver,  exclaim- 
ing as  he  does  so,  '  I  invoke  the  goddess 
Mylitta  !  '—this  being  the  Assyrian  name 
for  Venus  ;— and  however  trifling  the  sum 
thrown  to  her  may  be,  its  refusal  would  be 
unlawful,  because  the  silver  so  offered  be- 
comes  sacred  and   is  applied  to   religious 
purposes.     The  woman  is  obliged,  there- 
fore, to  follow  him,  and  the  two  repair  at 
once  to  one  of  the  semi-secluded  alcoves  of 
the  temple  designed  for  the  purpose  in  view. 
At  length,  having  performed  her  duty  to 
the  goddess,  she  returns  home  and  cannot 
be  again  subjected  to  the  ordeal,  whatever 
may  be  the   sum  of    money  offered    her. 
Those   who   are    fortunate   enough   to    be 
pretty  or  elegantly  dressed  do  not  remain 
long  in  the  temple.     The  ugly  and  other- 
wise less-favored  must  stay  longer,  because 
they  are  not  able  to  so  readily  fulfill  their 
mission,  and  for  this  reason  some  have  been 
obliged  to   dwell  there   for  three   or  four 

years." 

This  practice  resembled  that  of  the  con- 
secrated  prostitution    so   common    among 


86  SEX  WORSHIP. 

phallic-worshiping  people,  in  the  fact  that 
sexual  union  under  these  divine  auspices 
was  considered  both  proper  and  holy,  but 
its  object  was,  of  course,  different  from  that 
which  governed  the  profession  of  the 
women  of  the  temple.  In  the  vast  majority 
of  cases,  the  women  who  thus  presented 
themselves  at  the  temples  were  maidens, 
whose  purpose  it  was  to  sacrifice  their  vir- 
ginity to  the  patron  deity. 

From  time  immemorial  virginity  has 
been  regarded  as  divinely  sacred,  and  has 
universally  been  looked  upon  as  belonging 
exclusively  to  the  gods.  This  belief  was  so 
strongly  implanted  in  the  minds  of  the 
ancient  Romans,  that  their  law  would  not 
permit  a  virgin  to  be  executed  in  the  ordi- 
nary manner.  No  matter  what  the  enor- 
mity of  her  guilt,  the  woman,  if  a  virgin, 
could  not  be  subjected  to  the  penalty  of 
death  by  violent  hands.  By  reason  of  her 
virginity  she  was  the  property  of  the  gods  ; 
she  contained  within  her  the  spiritual  pres- 
ence of  the  Deity;  and  hence,  before  inflict- 
ing the  last  penalty,  it  was  the  duty  of  the 
executioner  to  remove  the  god  from  her, 


SEXUAL  SACRIFICES.  87 

and  for  this  purpose  he  was  obliged,  as  a 
part  of  his  office,  to  deflower  her  ;  after 
which  she  was  strangled  or  burned. 

This  idea  of  the  holiness  of  maidenhood 
led  to  the  adoption  of  religious  precepts 
requiring  that  virginity  should  be  given  to 
God,  and  to  this  day  such  sacrifices  are 
made  in  all  parts  of  the  civilized  world  by 
Christian  women  who  take  solemn  vows  of 
chastity,  and  confine  themselves  in  con- 
vents, for  the  purpose  of  giving  up  their 
lives  and  their  virginity  to  the  Almighty. 

Among  the  ancients,  however,  life-long 
continence  was  not  regarded  as  a  necessary 
means  for  the  sacrifice  of  virginity.       The 
religious  duty  of  women  to  bear  children 
would   not  in  those   days   have  permitted 
such  a  custom.     To  them  it  was  sufficient 
that  the  first  sexual  act  of  a  woman  should 
be  given  to  her  deity  ;  that  the  act  by  which 
she  gave  up  her  divine  virginity  should  be 
dedicated  to  the  god  or  goddess  of  her  re- 
ligion.    This  was  sometimes  done  in  the 
manner   as   described   by   Herodotus,   but 
among  other  peoples  it  was  deemed  essen- 
tial   that    the    sacrifice    should    be    made 


oo  SEX  WORSHIP. 

through  a  holy  representative  of  the  deity 
or  by  means  of  his  consecrated  image. 

Accordingly,  we  find  that  in  some  cases 
it  was  customary  for  women  to  give  up 
their  virginity  to  the  priests  of  the  temples, 
while  others  offered  their  maidenhood  to  an 
image  of  the  Creator.  This  latter  mode 
was  common  in  Rome,  where  the  marriage 
laws  required  that  before  the  nuptials  could 
be  consummated,  the  bride  must  sacrifice 
her  virginity  to  Priapus.  It  was  usual, 
therefore,  immediately  after  the  conclusion 
of  the  wedding  ceremonies,  for  the  bride 
and  her  husband,  attended  by  the  parents 
and  friends,  to  repair  to  a  statue  of  Priapus, 
and  there,  in  the  presence  of  her  husband 
and  the  assembled  company,  take  her  first 
lesson  in  practical  priapic  worship  by 
means  of  the  iron  or  stone  phallus  of  the 
sacred  image. 

This  rite  was  a  solemnly  religious  one. 
The  bride  was  thus  brought  to  the  priapic 
statue  immediately  after  the  wedding,  in 
order  not  only  that  she  should  give  to  the 
god  his  due,  but  that  she  might  be  ren- 
dered fruitful  by   contact  with  the  divine 


SEXUAL  SACRIFICES.  89 

generator  and  be  capable  of  faithfully  and 
well  performing  all  the  duties  of  her  untried 
situation  as  a  wife.  The  ceremony  was  ac- 
companied with  an  offering  of  flowers  and 
libations  of  wine  and  with  prayers  to  the 
god  for  matrimonial  and  maternal  bless- 
ings. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    FEMALE    PRINCIPLE. 

A  far  greater  importance  has  always  been 
attached  to  the  male  than  to  the  female 
principle  of  creation.  The  Creator  always 
was  and  ever  has  been  regarded  as  mascu- 
line. The  supreme  god  of  every  theology 
is  a  male.  This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
part  played  by  the  woman  in  the  phenome- 
non of  procreation  is  not  only  passive  and 
receptive,  but  was  for  a  long  time  regarded 
as  merely  functional.  The  woman  was 
simply  the  man's  chattel,  whose  only  pur- 
pose was  to  bear  him  his  children.  That 
she  contributed  toward  the  production  of 
the  offspring  by  any  creative  power  of  her 
own  was  not  appreciated.  Only  the  mas- 
culine— the  active — element  was  recognized 
in  the  act  of  procreation  ;  it  alone  was  the 
generator.  The  female  element  was 
naught  but  that  of  a  passive  producer  and 
bearer  of  what  the  male  created. 

But  in  time  mankind  awoke  to  a  realiza- 
tion  of  the   fact   that   the   female   element 


THE  FEMALE  PRINCIPLE.  91 

plays  an  important  and  essential  part  in  the 
reproduction  of  life  ;  that  not  only  is  the 
union  of  the  sexes  necessary  for  procrea- 
tion, but  that  the  production  of  the  off- 
spring depends  upon  the  co-operation  and 
reciprocal  activity  of  both  elements,  and 
hence  the  female  principal  of  nature,  in- 
stead of  being  considered  simply  as  a  pas- 
sive medium,  was  exalted  and  worshiped  as 
a  potent  factor  in  the  mystery  of  creation 
and  reproduction. 

In  fact,  there  were  some  among  the  early 
people  of  the  world  who  carried  this  wor- 
ship to  an  extreme,  holding  that  the  female 
creative  power  was  superior  to  that  of  the 
male,  and  that  the  feminine  generative 
organs  were  the  true  symbol  of  the  creative 
deity.  This  gave  rise  to  two  great  religious 
factions  :  the  worshipers  of  the  female  sym- 
bol, the  yoni,  and  the  worshipers  of  the 
phallus  or  lingam.  In  the  very  oldest  re- 
cords of  the  world  there  are  certain  vague 
allusions  here  and  there  to  great  religious 
wars  of  prehistoric  times — wars  between  the 
Yonites  and  the  Lingamites  ;  wars  that 
were  more  terrible  and  destructive  than  any 


92  SEX  WORSHIP. 

that  have  shaken  the  world  in  later  times 
and  whose  fundamental  issue  was  never 
settled,  but  has  descended  from  age  to  age 
and  from  generation  to  generation,  even 
unto  this  day,  where  we  find  man  still  fight- 
ing and  ready  to  fight,  to  prove  that  his  god 
is  the  only  true  god. 

Our  earliest  records  and  traditions  indi- 
cate, however,  that  a  reconciliatory  worship 
of  both  the  male  and  female  principles  had 
become  general  thousands  of  years  ago  ; 
for  we  find  in  all  religions  a  reverential 
recognition  of  the  necessity  of  female  co- 
operation in  the  production  of  life.  Al- 
though the  Creator,  the  Supreme  God,  is 
always  represented  as  masculine  and  omni- 
potent, it  is  also  true  that  in  no  theological 
account  of  the  genesis  of  the  world  is  it  held 
that  the  Creator  brought  life  into  existence 
without  the  assistance  of  the  feminine  ele- 
ment. In  some  of  the  old  theologies,  as 
the  Greek  and  Egyptian,  for  example,  the 
Creator  is  represented  with  a  consort,  a 
celestial  wife,  who  was  worshiped  as  next 
in  rank  to  the  Creator  himself. 


THE  FEMALE  PRINCIPLE.  93 

Again,  as  in  the  case  of  Brahma,  the  su- 
preme god  of  the  Hindoos,  he  is  repre- 
sented as  androgynous  ;  that  is,  uniting 
both  sexes  in  one  and  being  thus  capable 
of  sexual  union  within  himself.  This  idea 
of  an  androgynous  deity  is  a  very  common 
one  in  the  ancient  faiths,  as  well  as  among 
the  Hindoos  of  to-day,  and  there  are  found 
frequent  realistic  representations  of  deities 
possessed  of  the  organs  of  both  sexes,  or 
showing  a  beard  on  the  face  of  a  goddess, 
as  may  be  seen  in  some  of  the  pictures  of 
Venus.  Portrayals  of  the  androgynal  deity 
are  frequent  on  the  temples  of  India,  and 
many  of  the  figures  are  most  elaborately  de- 
signed, in  an  attempt  to  both  truly  and 
symbolically  represent  the  divine  duality  of 
the  Creator. 

In  one  of  the  sacred  books  of  the  Hin- 
doos we  are  told,  that  "  the  Supreme  Spirit 
in  the  act  of  creation  became  two-fold  ;  the 
right  side  was  male,  the  left  side  female." 
The  principal  symbol  in  representation  of 
this  double-sex  divinity  is  one  of  a  figure 
made  up  of  male  and  female  parts,  but  so 
embellished  with  mystical  designs  and  sym- 


94  SEX  WORSHIP. 

bolical  details  as  to  be  beyond  the  compre- 
hension of  the  average  mind  ;  which,  in- 
deed, is  the  very  purpose  of  this  sacred 
symbol  ;  for,  as  the  Hindoos  say,  "  When 
one  can  interpret  this  emblem  of  the  an- 
drogynous divinity  he  knows  all  that  is 
known." 

In  other  theologies,  while  there  is  lack- 
ing a  feminine  consort,  in  the  shape  of  a 
goddess,  or  a  creator  possessed  of  both 
sexes,  it  is  recorded  that  life  was  brought 
into  existence  by  the  divine  impregnation 
of  the  earth  or  the  waters,  which  is  virtually 
a  union  of  the  two  elements  ;  for,  as  will 
be  shown  hereafter,  both  the  earth  and  the 
waters  have  always  been  regarded  as  femi- 
nine and  as  symbols  of  the  female  creative 
function.  In  the  Mosaic  account  of  genesis 
we  read  that  "  the  spirit  of  the  Lord  moved 
upon  the  face  of  the  waters;  "  which  means, 
literally,  that  the  Creator  impregnated  the 
waters,  or  the  female  element  of  nature. 

In  short,  the  human  mind  could  not  con- 
ceive of  creation  or  reproduction  without 
the  employment  of  both  the  male  and 
female  elements,  notwithstanding  that  the 


THE  FEMALE  PRINCIPLE.  95 

true  importance  of  the  latter  was  sometimes 
almost  entirely  ignored,  and  was  worshiped 
to  a  much  less  extent  than  the  former. 

That  life  could  be  produced  without  the 
congress  of  the  two  sexes  was  never  be- 
lieved, for  we  see  that  the  Almighty  and 
Supreme  God  could  not  himself  accomplish 
it.  This  conviction  is  further  illustrated  in 
the  various  legends  concerning  the  birth  of 
a  god  by  a  virgin.  In  all  of  the  theologies 
containing  this  feature  (and  there  are  none 
that  do  not),  it  is  taught  that  the  Supreme 
Father  had  actual,  material  knowledge  of 
the  virgin  ;  it  is  not  held  that  she  conceived 
without  contact  with  the  masculine  element. 
This,  according  to  universal  belief,  would 
have  been  impossible,  in  spite  of  the  om- 
nipotence of  the  Deity;  such  an  occurrence 
would  be  contrary  to  nature  and  to  God. 

The  holiness  and  wonder  of  the  birth  of 
a  son  by  a  virgin  lay  not  in  the  fact  that  a 
virgin  conceived,  but  that  she  conceived 
through  the  divine  impregnation  of  God  ; 
that  the  Almighty  had  chosen  her  for  his 
sacred  purpose.  Unions  between  gods  and 
women  are  frequently  related  in  the  ancient 


96  SEX  WORSHIP. 

mythologies,  and  are  always  regarded  as 
sanctifying  the  woman,  of  elevating  her 
above  her  fellow  mortals,  and  of  endowing 
her  child  with  god-like  attributes  ;  as  wit- 
ness the  legends  of  the  Greek  and  Roman 
mythologies,  and  the  account  of  the  im- 
maculate conception  and  birth  of  Krishna, 
the  Hindoo  saviour,  and  of  Buddha,  the 
founder  of  one  of  the  greatest  religious 
faiths  in  the  world. 

Whatever  may  be  the  spiritual  idea  at  the 
present  time  regarding  the  immaculate  im- 
pregnation of  the  Virgin  of  Christianity,  it 
is  certain,  according  to  statements  in  the 
Bible,  that  neither  Joseph  nor  Mary,  nor, 
in  fact,  the  writers  of  the  gospels  them- 
selves, ever  supposed  that  a  woman  could 
conceive  without  direct  masculine  assist- 
ance. That  this  idea  was  held  in  the 
church  for  centuries  afterwards  is  realis- 
tically demonstrated  by  the  picture  of  the 
"  Rosary  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,"  printed 
by  authority  of  the  Church,  at  Venice,  in 
I  542.  This  represents  the  Virgin  kneeling 
before  an  altar,  with  her  arms  and  eyes  up- 
raised to  heaven,  where  she  beholds  a  radi- 


THE  FEMALE  PRINCIPLE.  97 

ant  throng  of  cherubim  with  the  Holy  Dove 
in  their  midst,  while  a  potent  ray  of  light 
descends  and  enters  her  person,  on  the  front 
of  which  is  a  picture  of  the  divinely  and 
miraculously  conceived  Christ-child. 

This  universally  recognized  necessity  for 
the  union  of  the  male  with  the  female 
power,  in  order  to  accomplish  the  glorious 
purpose  of  reproduction,  naturally  resulted 
in  the  worship  of  the  female  principle  as  co- 
ordinate with  that  of  the  male,  as  is  found 
in  many  of  the  early  religions.  Isis,  the 
great  feminine  creative  god  of  the  Egyp- 
tians, was  worshiped  with  a  veneration 
fully  equal  to  that  bestowed  upon  her  mas- 
culine companion,  Osiris,  and  though  all 
nations  did  not  give  to  the  feminine  deity  so 
high  a  rank,  there  were  none  that  did  not 
have  their  Goddess  of  Life,  their  Queen  of 
Heaven,  their  Friga,  their  Aphrodite,  or 
one  of  a  great  variety  of  forms  and  names 
under  which  the  deification  of  the  feminine 
principle  was  known. 

While  mankind  came  to  realize  the  vast 
significance  of  the  feminine  nature  and  to 
worship  it  as  a  factor  in  the  divine  purpose 


98  SEX  WORSHIP. 

of  all  life,  he  did  not,  as  a  rule,  give  to  it 
equal  rank  with  that  of  the  great  male 
principle.  The  masculine  Creator  has 
always  been  supreme  in  his  power  and  ca- 
pabilities. The  initiative  of  all  life  and 
activity  rests  with  him  ;  he  is  the  active, 
moving,  generating  power  of  nature,  while 
the  female  is  the  receptive,  passive  element, 
the  molder  and  preserver  of  life. 

As  there  were  in  prehistoric  times,  so  are 
there  to-day  certain  sects  that  consider 
and  worship  the  female  principle  as  supe- 
rior to  that  of  the  male.  These  are  the 
Hindoo  worshipers  of  Sacti,  the  supreme 
feminine,  creative  deity,  whose  worship  con- 
sists in  the  adoration  of  the  vulva  as  her 
sacred  symbol  and  divine  incarnation.  In 
adoring  her  mentally  the  worshiper  is 
taught  to  imagine  this  symbol,  which  is 
commonly  called  the  yoni,  in  which  he  must 
see  a  chapel,  which  he  is  to  enter  and 
wherein  he  is  to  worship. 

The  principal  ceremony  of  this  sect  con- 
sists in  a  religious  service  designed  for  the 
purpose  of  manifesting  reverence  for  and 
paying  tribute  to  the  divine  female  power. 


THE  FEMALE  PRINCIPLE.  99 

This  ceremony  requires  the  presence  of  a 
young,  beautiful  and  nude  girl  as  a  living 
representative  of  the  goddess.  She  is 
generally  chosen  from  the  company  of  con- 
secrated nautch  girls  attached  to  the  temple, 
and  one  thus  selected  esteems  it  a  special 
honor,  as  a  tribute  to  her  beauty,  accom- 
plishments and  abilities,  which  must  be  of 
the  highest  order  to  render  her  worthy  as 
a  representative  of  the  immaculate  deity. 
To  this  girl  meat  and  wine  are  offered  by 
the  devotees,  after  which  follow  dancing 
and  the  chanting  of  hymns.  As  an  act  of 
the  highest  devotion  and  as  typical  of  the 
divine  means  by  which  life  is  produced,  the 
devout  worshipers  conclude  the  ceremony 
by  a  sexual  offering  to  the  sacred  repre- 
sentative of  the  deity,  who  is  obliged  to  be- 
stow her  favors  upon  all  of  the  devotees 
who  desire  thus  to  pay  homage  to  their 
creator. 

The  ancient  holy  regard  for  the  feminine 
power  was  in  a  measure  due  to  its  magical 
and  inciting  effect  upon  the  masculine  na- 
ture. It  was  through  the  woman  that  the 
divine  sexual  emotions  were  aroused  ;    it 


100  SEX  WORSHIP. 

was  the  sight  or  thought  of  her  that 
brought  into  activity  man's  generative 
nature  and  powers.  The  invigorating  and 
inspiring  effect  produced  by  the  sight  or 
touch  of  a  woman,  especially  a  virgin  in  the 
garb  of  nature,  was  regarded  with  deepest 
reverence  as  a  manifestation  of  the  divine 
feminine  power.  Its  potency  was  univer- 
sally recognized,  and  we  are  told  that  it  was 
employed  for  the  purpose  of  infusing  life 
and  vigor  into  king  David,  after  he  had  be- 
come aged.  "  Now  king  David  was  old 
and  stricken  in  years,  and  they  covered  him 
with  clothes,  but  he  gat  no  heat.  Where- 
fore his  servants  said  unto  him,  Let  there 
be  sought  for  my  lord  a  young  virgin  ;  and 
let  her  stand  before  the  king,  and  let  her 
cherish  him,  and  let  her  lie  in  thy  bosom, 
that  my  lord  may  get  heat." 

Like  those  of  the  masculine  principle,  the 
attributes  of  the  feminine  element  of  man- 
kind and  of  nature  were  ascribed  to  a  deity, 
the  feminine  ruler  and  patron  of  fecundity 
and  generation,  of  sexual  power  and  of 
love  ;  and  the  organ  (the  yoni)  through 
which  her  powers  were  manifested  became 


THE  FEMALE  PRINCIPLE.  I01 

her  sacred  symbol  and  was  worshipped  in 
the  same  light  and  with  the  same  veneration 
as  the  phallus.  In  itself,  however,  it  was 
regarded  with  greater  reverence  than  its 
masculine  counterpart  ;  it  was  more  care- 
fully concealed,  and  treated  as  more  mysti- 
cal. The  sight  of  a  living  yoni,  particularly 
that  of  a  virgin,  was  thought  to  be  of  magi- 
cal virtue,  and  was  considered  a  certain 
omen  of  good  fortune. 

A  remnant  of  the  devout  regard  formerly 
inspired  by  this  representative  of  the  femi- 
nine deity  is  still  to  be  found  among  certain 
sects  in  India,  Palestine  and  parts  of  Africa. 
The  devotee,  on  bended  knee  and  in  silent 
prayer,  offers  to  the  uncovered  yoni  a  part 
of  the  food  given  him  by  the  woman,  before 
he  tastes  it,  which  she  accepts  and  eats  as 
evidence  of  its  purity  from  poison.  This 
ceremony  is  simply  a  solemn  method  of 
vowing  mutual  friendship  and  is  similar  in 
meaning  to  the  ancient  mode  of  swearing 
by  grasping  the  phallus. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

FEMININE  EMBLEMS. 

The  independent  yoni,  the  feminine  sym- 
bol of  creation,  was  naturally  more  difficult 
to  exactly  represent  in  the  form  of  an  image 
than  was  the  phallus,  or  lingam  ;  and  from 
the  very  beginning,  therefore,  this  symbol 
was  portrayed  in  more  or  less  conven- 
tional forms  and  was  not  infrequently  ex- 
tended to  other  more  easily  represented 
portions  of  the  female  anatomy,  as  the 
breasts,  the  mons  Veneris,  etc. 

The  principal  design  in  representation  of 
the  yoni  was  one  that  was  known  under  the 
name  of  Asherah,  which  is  translated  and 
referred  to  in  the  Bible  as  the  "  grove,"  or 
"  groves."  This  image,  which  was  a  sym- 
bol of  Ashtoreth  or  of  the  union  of  Baal  and 
Ashtoreth — the  male  and  female  procrea- 
tive  deities  of  the  Assyrians, — was  generally 
made  of  wood  and  had  in  its  center  an  open- 
ing or  fissure,  which  was  regarded  as  pre- 
eminently sacred    as    the    Door    of    Life. 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  I03 

Above  this  fissure  was  an  emblematical  rep- 
resentation of  the  clitoris,  divided  into  seven 
parts,  and  around  the  Door  of  Life  were 
carved  tufts  of  hair,  thirteen  in  number,  in- 
dicating  the    annual    fertile    periods    of    a 

woman. 

Designs  of  this   image  occur  very  fre- 
quently in  the  sculptures  of  Nineveh  and 
Babylon.     It  is  almost  always  shown  re- 
ceiving the  adoration  of  the  king  and  his 
attendants,  who  hold  in  their  hands  pine 
cones  and  other  symbolical  sex  offerings. 
Above  the  grove  is  a  winged  figure— the 
celestial  bowman,  with  his  bow  and  a  quiver 
full  of  arrows,  for  the  use  of  all  who  desire 
divine  vigor  in  the  concluding  rites  of  the 
worship,  which  required  that  the  devotees 
should  unite  in  sexual  congress,  as  a  fitting 
tribute  to  the  deity  ;    a  performance  that 
took  place  in  a  small  bower  situated  near 

the  idol. 

In  the  figure  and  office  of  the  Assyrian 
bowman  we  see  the  prototype  of  the  Gre- 
cian Cupid,  the  little  god  of  love,  or  ama- 
tory desire,  with  his  bow  and  arrows  ;  the 
arrow  being  a  very  old  phallic  emblem. 


104  SEX  WORSHIP. 

According  to  the  Old  Testament,  the 
Israelites  were  constantly  lapsing  into 
idolatry  by  serving  Baal  and  the  groves. 
Many  of  their  kings  deserted  the  faith 
of  their  fathers  by  building  altars,  temples 
and  images  and  burning  incense  to  the 
phallic  deities  of  the  Chaldeans,  Assyrians, 
Egyptians  and  others.  They  were  particu- 
larly persistent  in  the  worship  of  the  groves, 
"  which  were  set  up  on  every  high  hill  and 
under  every  green  tree."  These  were 
usually  surrounded  with  hangings  or  cur- 
tains, forming  a  tent  or  semi-secluded 
bower,  to  which  the  male  and  female  devo- 
tees repaired  for  the  sexual  consummation 
of  their  worship,  after  having  anointed  the 
image  and  placing  before  it  offerings  of 
fruits,  flowers  and  incense,  accompanied 
with  prayers  and  the  chanting  of  hymns. 

Judging  from  the  lamentations  of  the 
prophets,  and  their  allusions  to  some  of  the 
practices  indulged  in  by  the  children  of 
Israel,  it  is  evident  that  the  worship  of  Baal 
and  other  phallic  deities  of  the  neighboring 
tribes  was  of  an  intensely  sexual  character 
and  appealed  more  strongly  to  the  religious 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  105 

disposition  of  those  days  than  did  the  more 
temperate  worship  prescribed  by  the  laws 
of  Moses.  For  a  graphic  description  of  the 
"abominations"  resulting  from  the  religious 
intercourse  of  the  Jews  with  the  Assyrians, 
Chaldeans  and  Babylonians,  the  reader  is 
referred  to  the  16th  and  the  23d  chapters  of 
Ezekiel. 

The  most  common  form  of  the  feminine 
symbol  was  that  made  in  representation 
of  the  mons  Veneris.  This  was  represented 
by  mounds  and  pyramids,  remains  of 
which  in  various  styles  and  sizes  are  to 
be  found  in  all  parts  of  the  world  ;  the 
most  conspicuous  examples  being  the  pyra- 
mids of  Egypt,  which  are  still  the  wonder 
of  the  world,  though  comparatively  few 
people  recognize  or  are  aware  of  the  relig- 
ious and  sexual  significance  of  these  mar- 
velous structures. 

They  were  erected  in  honor  of  the  fem- 
inine creative  deity,  and  no  other  motive 
but  that  of  religion  could  have  prompted 
the  building  of  such  gigantic  monuments. 
Various  explanations  of  their  purpose  and 
significance  have  been  set  forth,  with  the 


io6 


SEX  WORSHIP. 


result  that  we  have  been  taught  to  regard 
them  simply  as  tombs  or  as  great  observa- 
tories, as  though  the  ancients  had  nothing 
better  to  do  or  had  no  higher  motives  than 
to  build  these  wonderful  structures  for  the 
sole  purpose  of  sepulchers,  or  to  scatter  ob- 
servatories all  over  the  country,  and  many 
of  them  within  close  range  of  one  another. 

When  we  consider  that  the  pyramid  of 
Cheops,  for  example,  covers  an  area  of 
nearly  fourteen  acres,  that  it  was  originally 
four  hundred  and  seventy-nine  feet  in 
height  and  contained  ninety  million  cubic 
feet  of  rock,  which  is  in  immense  blocks, 
each  of  which  had  to  be  quarried,  dressed 
and  carried  to  the  pyramid,  and  this  in  an 
age  (three  thousand  years  before  Christ) 
when  mechanical  contrivances  were  of  the 
most  primitive  kind, — when  these  facts  are 
borne  in  mind,  it  is  irrational  to  suppose 
that  this  titanic  work  was  designed  for  an 
insignificant  purpose. 

It  is  true  that  all  the  pyramids  of  Egypt 
were  intended  for  sepulchres,  but  their 
shape  and  colossal  proportions  were  the  re- 
sult of  a  religious  desire  to  honor  the  deity 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  107 

and  to  sanctify  the  resting-places  of  the 
dead  by  building  them  in  the  form  of  the 
divine  emblem. 

Pyramids,  or  their  remains,  are  likewise 
met  with  in  Babylon,  in  various  parts  of 
Italy  and  India,  and  in  China  and  Japan. 
Next  to  Egypt  they  are  most  frequent  in 
Mexico    and    other    portions    of   America. 
Some  of  these  ancient  Mexican  pyramids 
far  exceed  in  area  the  dimensions  of  the 
largest  Egyptian   monuments,  but,  unlike 
those  of  Egypt,  were  generally  designed  for 
use  as  temples,  though  their  religious  sig- 
nificance and  symbolical  purpose  were  the 
same. 

The  pyramid  was  the  elaborated  or  con- 
ventionalized form  of  the  mound,  the  primi- 
tive symbol  of  the  mons  Veneris.  Remains 
of  artificial  mounds  as  religious  emblems 
are  common  in  many  parts  of  the  world  ; 
but,  as  a  rule,  greater  reverence  was  paid  to 
natural  mounds  and  elevations,  especially 
those  of  well-defined  shape.  Such  eleva- 
tions, therefore,  were  regarded  as  sacred 
spots  and  were  dedicated  to  divine  worship; 
altars  and  temples  being  considered  more 


io8 


SEX  WORSHIP. 


holy  if  placed  upon  a  mound,  and  we  learn 
from  the  Old  Testament  how  intimately  the 
"  high  places  "  and  "  high  hills  "  were  asso- 
ciated with  the  worship  of  the  feminine 
deity. 

This  regard  for  natural  elevations  fre- 
quently extended  to  mountains,  and  there 
are  sects  to  this  day  who  worship  moun- 
tains as  symbols  of  the  feminine  creative 
deity.  In  Germany  is  the  famous  Horsel- 
berg,  commonly  called  Venusberg,  or 
mountain  of  Venus.  This  is  the  mountain 
connected  with  the  legend  of  Tannhauser, 
and  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the 
legend  will  perceive  the  full  significance  of 
the  name  given  the  mountain.  In  ancient 
times  it  was  held  in  particular  veneration, 
not  only  because  of  its  shape,  but  because 
of  the  large  cavern  that  opens  into  it. 

A  natural  opening  was  always  looked 
upon  as  a  particularly  sacred  emblem. 
Any  hole  or  cave,  any  cleft  or  fissure,  any 
natural  crevice,  was  regarded  with  holy 
reverence,  as  sacred  to  the  divine  Mother 
Earth.  From  time  immemorial  the  earth 
has  been  regarded  as  feminine  ;   as  the  All- 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  109 

creative  Mother  ;  the  consort  of  the 
Almighty  Father,  the  Sun.  According  to 
many  early  myths,  the  human  race  was  con- 
ceived in  the  womb  of  the  Earth-Mother, 
and  the  first  man  and  woman  came  forth 
from  the  under-world.  To  this  day  we 
talk  of  men  as  creatures  of  earth  ;  as  com- 
ing from  the  earth  and  returning  to  the 
earth,  and  in  our  burial  custom  we  are  but 
continuing  the  ancient  practice,  that  had 
its  origin  with  prehistoric  man,  of  rever- 
entially giving  back  to  Mother  Earth  the 
children  of  her  womb. 

When  once  the  idea  became  general  that 
our  world  is  feminine,  it  was  but  reasonable 
that  natural  orifices  should  have  been  re- 
garded as  typical  of  that  part  which  charac- 
terizes woman,  and  this  religious  regard  for 
openings  in  the  earth  naturally  led  to  a  like 
veneration  for  crevices  or  clefts  in  rocks, 
and  finally  for  artificial  openings  or  aper- 
tures, especially  those  connected  with  places 
of  worship.  In  the  vestibule  of  a  church 
at  Rome  there  is  a  large  perforated  stone, 
in  the  hole  of  which  the  Romans  are  said  to 
have  placed  their  hands  while  swearing  a 


HO  SEX  WORSHIP. 

solemn  oath  ;  a  practice  analogous  to  that 
of  the  Hebrews. 

As  at  birth,  a  new  being  issues  from  the 
mother,  so  it  was  supposed  that  emergence 
from  a  terrestial  or  other  sanctified  cleft  was 
equivalent  to  a  new  birth — to  regeneration, 
— and  in  many  places  it  was  a  common 
practice  for  parents  to  sanctify  their  chil- 
dren by  passing  them  through  openings 
and  crevices. 

Artificial  holes,  designed  for  purposes  of 
purification,  are  still  to  be  seen  in  some  of 
the  ancient  religious  structures  of  the 
British  Isles  and  India  ;  the  stones  in  a  cer- 
tain part  of  the  building  being  so  arranged 
as  to  have  a  hole  under  them,  through 
which  the  devotees  passed,  and  were  thus 
purified  or  "  born  again." 

Similar  customs  are  still  practised  in 
parts  of  India.  On  the  Island  of  Bombay, 
at  Malabar  Hill,  there  is  a  rock,  upon  the 
surface  of  which  is  a  natural  crevice,  which 
connects  with  a  cavity  opening  below. 
This  is  used  by  the  Gentoos  as  a  means  of 
purification,  which  they  say  is  effected  by 
going  in  at  the  lower  opening  and  einerg- 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  "I 

ing  from  the  cavity  above.  A  similar  prac- 
tice is  more  extensively  observed  in  the 
northern  portion  of  India,  where  there  is  a 
celebrated  place  to  which  many  pilgrims 
go,  to  pass  through  an  opening  in  the 
mountain  ;  the  performance  being  known 
as  "  passing  through  the  Cow's  Belly."  In 
other  places  this  mode  of  purification  is  ac- 
complished by  passing  through  an  artificial 
structure  in  the  shape  of  a  cow  ;  the  de- 
votees going  in  at  the  mouth  and  emerging 
at  the  rear. 

The  cow  has  always  been  regarded  as  a 
particularly  holy  emblem  of  the  feminine 
deity.  As  the  incarnation  of  Isis  it  was 
worshiped  by  the  Egyptians  with  a  venera- 
tion equal  to  that  bestowed  upon  the  bull. 
Many  of  the  ancient  temples  dedicated  to 
the  feminine  deity  contained  golden  images 
of  the  cow  or  calf,  and  we  are  all  familiar 
with  the  adoration  paid  by  the  Israelites  to 
this  creature  as  a  sacred  symbol.  "  And 
when  the  people  saw  that  Moses  delayed  to 
come  down  out  of  the  mount,  the  people 
gathered  themselves  together  unto  Aaron, 
and  said  unto  him,  Up,  make  us  gods  which 


112  SEX  WORSHIP. 

shall  go  before  us  ;  "  and  when  the  image  of 
the  calf  had  been  made  from  the  golden  ear- 
rings of  the  people,  it  was  worshiped  with 
loud  rejoicings  as  the  representative  of  the 
deity  that  was  to  lead  them  out  of  the  wil- 
derness. 

In  later  years  Rehoboam,  the  king  of  the 
Israelites,  likewise  made  two  calves  of  gold, 
and  said  unto  the  people,  "  Behold  thy 
gods,  O  Israel,  which  brought  thee  up  out 
of  the  land  of  Egypt  ; "  clearly  demon- 
strating that  the  cow  or  calf  was  persistently 
regarded  as  a  sacred  symbol,  notwithstand- 
ing that  the  worship  of  such  images  was 
forbidden  by  the  Mosaic  law. 

A  symbol  of  equal  significance  with  that 
of  the  opening  or  aperture,  but  of  far  greater 
sanctity  and  importance,  was  the  chest  or 
ark,  or  any  consecrated  repository  or  en- 
closure. The  yoni  was  the  receptacle,  the 
divine  ark,  of  the  phallus  ;  within  its  hidden 
enclosure  was  contained  the  mystery  of  life. 
Its  interior,  to  which  the  phallus,  the  Crea- 
tor, alone  had  access,  was  the  holy  of  holies. 
This  was  symbolized  by  the  ark,  the  holiest 
of  all   symbols   in   the   worship   and   cere- 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  JI3 

monies  of  the  ancients.  The  most  sacred 
object  connected  with  the  worship  of  Osiris 
was  the  ark,  containing  the  divine  symbol 

of  life. 

The  Jewish  ark  of  the  covenant,  which  in 
size  and  manner  of  construction  very 
closely  resembled  the  sacred  ark  of  the 
Egyptians,  was  the  most  important  and 
holy  feature  in  the  life  and  worship  of  the 
Israelites.  It  was  always  guarded  with  the 
greatest  care  and  veneration  by  the  priests, 
and  when  moved  from  one  place  to  another, 
was  borne  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  Le- 
vites  and  attended  with  a  grand  ceremonial 
procession,  "  with  shouting  and  with  sound 
of  the  cornet  and  with  trumpets  and  with 
cymbals,  making  a  noise  with  psalteries  and 

harps." 

The  ark  was  the  divine  symbol  of  the 
earth,  of  the  female  principle,  containing 
the  germ  of  all  animated  nature,  and  re- 
garded as  the  Great  Mother  from  whom  all 
things  come.  It  was  likewise  the  symbol 
of  salvation  ;  the  place  of  safety,  the  sacred 
receptacle  of  the  divine  wisdom  and  power  ; 
hence,  the  ark  of  the  covenant  was  the  holy 


114  SEX  WORSHIP. 

abiding  place  of  the  tables  of  law  that  had 
been  handed  to  Moses  by  the  Lord.  It  also 
contained  Aaron's  rod,  which  sprang  into 
life  and  budded,  conveying  the  idea  of  sym- 
bolized fertility,  and  thus  making  the  ark 
the  repository  of  the  emblem  of  the  creative 
deity.  To  this  day  the  ark  is  retained  as  a 
religious  symbol  in  the  Christian  church  ; 
for  the  Roman  Catholic  pyx,  the  holy  recep- 
tacle of  the  body  of  Christ,  is  but  an  adapta- 
tion of  the  ark,  and  has  the  same  purpose 
and  significance  as  the  ancient  symbol. 

The  ark  of  the  Egyptians  contained  the 
symbols  of  the  Triune  Creator  ;  the  phallus, 
the  egg  and  the  serpent ;  the  first  repre- 
senting the  Sun,  the  male  generative  prin- 
ciple, the  active  Creator  ;  the  second,  the 
Preserver  ;  the  passive,  female  principle  ; 
and  the  third,  the  Destroyer,  or  Repro- 
ducer. The  egg  as  an  emblem  of  the  female 
principle  was  a  very  common  emblem  in  all 
ancient  faiths.  It  was  considered  as  con- 
taining the  germ  of  all  life  ;  the  image  of 
that  which  produced  all  things  in  itself  ;  the 
emblem  of  life  regenerated.  As  a  symbol 
of  the  reproduction  or  resurrection  of  life 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  115 

it  is  still  employed  in  the  modern  Easter 
celebration,  as  it  was  in  similar  celebrations 
in  all  past  ages. 

The  moon,  like  the  earth,  being  receptive 
only,  was  in  a  similar  manner  regarded  as 
feminine,  and  was  not  infrequently  wor- 
shiped as  an  actual  deity — the  Lunar  God- 
dess. Ever  remaining  the  same  from  year 
to  year,  unchanged  by  age  and  unweakened 
by  use,  the  ancients  came  to  think  of  the 
moon  as  the  ever-continuing  virgin  wife  of 
the  sun,  and  the  virgin  mother  of  all  inferior 
deities.  This  naturally  led  to  the  adoption 
of  representations  of  the  moon  as  peculiarly 
significant  symbols  of  the  feminine  principle 
of  nature,  the  chief  of  these  being  the  cres- 
cent as  an  emblem  of  virginity.  This  is  one 
of  the  most  common  and  widely  diffused 
feminine  emblems,  and  to  the  present  day 
amulets  in  the  shape  of  a  crescent  are  worn 
by  the  women  of  Italy  and  are  regarded  as 
especially  appropriate  to  virgins  and  preg- 
nant women. 

In  pictorial  representations  of  the  yoni, 
as  the  symbol  of  the  feminine  procreative 
power,  it  is  often  portrayed  with  more  real- 


Il6  SEX  WORSHIP. 

ism  than  is  to  be  found  in  its  images. 
This  is  especially  true  when  shown  in  its 
place  on  the  female  form,  as  is  common  on 
ancient  coins,  vases,  sculptures  and  in  de- 
signs on  temples.  Women  with  exagger- 
ated pudenda  are  frequently  depicted  on 
sacred  lamps  and  other  church  utensils,  and 
until  within  a  short  time  ago  several 
churches  in  Ireland  had  over  their  main 
entrance  an  elaborate  sculpture  of  a  woman 
pointing  to  her  yoni.  A  similar  design  was 
to  be  seen  on  the  side  of  a  church  entrance 
at  Servatos,  in  Spain,  while  an  equally  phal- 
lic man  was  exhibited  on  the  opposite  side. 

Symbolical  designs  of  a  similar  character 
are  still  to  be  seen  in  India,  plainly  inscribed 
on  the  temples  or  carved  in  stone  and 
placed  on  the  walls.  Over  the  gates  of  one 
of  the  cities  of  the  ancient  province  of  Sir- 
inpatau  stands  a  life-size  stone  statue  of 
Sita,  one  of  the  feminine  deities  of  procrea- 
tion, while  on  each  side  of  her  are  three 
naked  penitents  on  their  knees,  engaged  in 
the  act  prescribed  by  the  ancient  ritual  for 
the  adoration  of  this  goddess. 

In  many  cases,  especially  in  the  ancient 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  H7 

temples  of  Mexico,  Yucatan  and  Peru,  the 
keystone  over  the  portal  was  adorned  with 
a  picture  or  carving  of  the  yoni.  Our  mod- 
ern use  of  the  horsehoe  as  an  emblem  of 
good  luck  owes  its  origin  to  this  custom  of 
placing  a  design  of  the  yoni  above  the  door 
as  a  talisman;  the  horseshoe  being  adopted 
because  of  its  resemblance  to  the  form 
which  the  representation  of  the  yoni  most 
frequently  assumed. 

The  pointed  oval  was  one  of  the  most 
common  of  the  more  conventional  designs 
of  the  yoni,  and  in  various  modifications  is 
still  retained  in  our  church  architecture,  as 
may  be  seen  in  the  shape  of  the  doors,  the 
windows  and  arches.  This  symbolical  oval 
was  frequently  referred  to  as  the  "  Door  of 
Life,"  and  is  to  be  seen  in  its  true  yonic  sig- 
nificance in  many  ancient  as  well  as  modern 
religious  designs.  Virgin  mothers  and 
feminine  deities  were  generally  represented 
standing  within  a  frame  of  this  shape,  and 
there  are  still  in  existence  medals  that  were 
worn  by  Christian  pilgrims  to  the  shrine  of 
the  Virgin  of  Amadon,  on  which  is  in- 
scribed a  design  of  this  character,  which 


Il8  SEX  WORSHIP. 

was  commonly  known  as  "The  Mother  and 
Child  in  the  Door  of  Life." 

As  was  pointed  out  in  the  case  of  the 
phallus,  so  it  may  be  shown  that  many  natu- 
ral objects  were  chosen  as  emblems  of  the 
yoni,  because  of  some  resemblance  to  that 
symbol.  Among  the  most  common  and 
familiar  emblems  of  this  character  is  the 
conch  shell,  which  is  still  worn  as  an  amulet 
in  various  parts  of  the  world,  as  it  was  by 
the  devout  women  of  antiquity. 

The  fish,  too,  is  a  well-known  religious 
symbol,  sacred  originally  to  Ishtar,  Venus 
and  other  feminine  deifications  of  the  sex- 
ual nature.  This  was  chosen  partly  on  ac- 
count of  its  fecundity  and  partly  because  its 
mouth  was  supposed  to  resemble  the  open- 
ing into  the  womb.  Piscatorial  designs  arc 
frequently  met  with  on  ancient  temples  and 
coins  and  are  not  uncommon  in  the  present- 
day  symbology  of  India,  one  of  the  prin- 
ciple designs  being  that  of  Vishnu  emerg- 
ing from  the  mouth  of  a  great  fish.  The 
bishop's  mitre  is  a  modified  form  of  a  fish's 
head  and  mouth  ;  a  style  of  religious  head- 
dress that  resulted  from  the  ancient  practice 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  lI9 

of  the  priests  of  Nineveh,  whose  veneration 
for  the  fish  as  a  holy  emblem  led  them  to 
adopt  a  form  of  dress  resembling  as  far  as 
possible  the  outward  appearance  of  this 
sacred  creature. 

The  fish  was  a  common  symbol  of  Freya, 
the  Scandinavian  Venus,  from  whom  is  de- 
rived the  name  of  the  sixth  day  of  the  week, 
as  on  that  day  the  Scandinavians  honored 
their  goddess  of  love  by  offerings  of  her 
sacred  emblem  ;  a  custom  which  we  still 
observe  by  eating  fish  on  Friday. 

In  this  connection  it  might  be  of  interest 
to  call  attention  to  the  fact,  that  three 
prominent  phallic  emblems  have  been  re- 
tained by  us  as  designs  for  weather  vanes— 
the  fish,  the  cock  and  the  arrow.  These 
emblems  originally  surmounted  the  towers 
and  spires  of  religious  buildings,  but  since 
their  primitive  significance  has  become 
obsolete,  they  have  been  relegated  to  the 
barns  and  stables. 

The  fig  tree  is  a  particularly  appropriate 
and  suggestive  emblem  in  sex  worship. 
Its  trilobed  leaf  is  emblematical  of  the  mas- 
culine triad,  and  was  commonly  used  and  re- 


120  SEX  WORSHIP. 

ferred  to  in  that  sense,  and  hence  its  use  as 
a  symbolical  covering  for  the  private  parts 
of  a  nude  figure.  Besides  its  masculine 
suggestiveness,  this  tree  had  also  a  feminine 
significance,  from  the  fact  that  its  fruit  was 
supposed  to  bear  a  strong  likeness  to  the 
shape  of  the  virgin  uterus,  and  that  the  eat- 
ing of  it  was  thought  to  promote  fecundity. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  this  tree  was 
one  of  unusual  sacredness  and  significance, 
and  in  the  early  religious  records  is  fre- 
quently used  as  a  figure  of  speech  for  the 
expression  of  sentiments  and  ideas,  which 
are  unintelligible  to  those  unacquainted 
with  the  many  symbolical  meanings  that 
have  been  ascribed  to  this  important  tree. 
"  To  sit  under  the  vine  and  fig  tree  ;  " 
'  Don't  care  a  fig,"  and  other  like  expres- 
sions, are  all  of  sexual  significance. 

In  addition  to  the  fig,  a  great  many  other 
trees  and  fruits  were  symbolical  of  the  pro- 
creative  functions;  as  the  pomegranate,  the 
fir,  the  apple,  the  cedar,  the  palm,  grapes, 
vines  and  berries  ;  all  of  which,  together 
with  several  other  examples,  are  alluded  to 
in  their  figurative  sense  in  the  Song  of  Solo- 


FEMININE  EMBLEMS.  121 

mon.  This  song  represents  an  amatory 
duet  between  Solomon  and  the  daughter  of 
Pharaoh  on  the  occasion  of  their  nuptials, 
and  is  supposed  to  be  but  one  of  a  thousand 
similar  love-songs  and  odes  composed  by 
king  Solomon.  This  particular  composi- 
tion is  regarded  as  the  song  of  songs,  and  is, 
indeed,  an  exquisite  poem,  being  preserved 
among  the  books  of  the  Bible  as  emblem- 
atical of  the  love  between  Christ  and  the 
Church. 

This  song  affords  a  striking  example  of 
what  has  been  said  regarding  the  purity  of 
sexuality,  when  made  the  object  of  or  con- 
nected with  religious  veneration.  Hun- 
dreds of  thousands  of  modest  and  devout 
men  and  women  reverently  read  the  Song 
of  Solomon  and  fail  to  see  in  its  amatory 
language  anything  but  what  is  pure  and 
holy  ;  and  yet  were  this  song  to  be  read  by 
one  who  understood  not  its  religious  sig- 
nificance, it  could  not  but  impress  him  as 
highly  erotic  and  sensual.  When  the  lover, 
speaking  to  his  beloved  one,  says,  "  Thy 
thighs  are  like  jewels  ;  thy  navel  is  like  a 
round  goblet  ;   thy  belly  is  like  an  heap  of 


122  SEX   WORSHIP. 

wheat  set  about  with  lilies,"  the  reverent 
Christian  sees  only  a  poetic  description  of 
the  Church.  And  when,  in  turn,  the 
woman  says  of  the  man,  "  His  cheeks  are  as 
a  bed  of  spices  ;  his  lips  like  lilies,  his 
belly  as  bright  ivory,  and  his  legs  as  pillars 
of  marble,  set  upon  sockets  of  fine  gold," 
and  "  he  shall  lie  all  night  betwixt  my 
breasts,"  the  pious  reader  beholds  naught 
but  a  holy  figurative  expression  of  the  love 
of  the  Church  for  the  Saviour. 

With  this  Song  in  mind,  let  us  not 
hastily  condemn  those  who  formerly  in- 
dulged in  similar  or  other  forms  of  sexual 
expressions  of  religion,  however  gross  or 
sensual  they  may  appear  to  us  in  our  ignor- 
ance of  the  religious  meaning  attached  to 
them. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  SERPENT  AND  THE  CROSS. 

Serpent  worship,  next  to  the  adoration  of 
the  phallus,  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
and  at  the  same  time  one  of  the  most  wide- 
spread and  persistent  forms  of  religion  the 
world  has  ever  known.  There  is  not  a 
country  of  the  ancient  world,  in  the  western 
as  well  as  the  eastern  hemisphere,  where  it 
cannot  be  traced,  pervading  every  known 
faith  and  system  of  theology,  and  leaving 
abundant  proofs  of  its  existence  and  ex- 
tent, in  the  shape  of  monuments,  temples 
and  earthworks,  as  well  as  in  designs  and 
inscriptions. 

No  other  symbol  has  been  invested  with 
such  a  variety  of  meanings  and  uses  as  has 
that  of  the  serpent.  It  typified  Wisdom, 
Power,  Eternity,  Good,  Evil,  Life,  Repro- 
duction and  various  other  attributes  of  the 
creative  principle.  It  entered  into  the 
mythology  of  every  nation — Egypt,  Syria, 
Greece,  India,  China,  Scandinavia,  Ameri- 


124  SEX  WORSHIP. 

ca  ;  in  short,  there  was  no  portion  of  the 
globe  in  which  it  was  not  recognized.  It 
consecrated  almost  every  temple,  it  sym- 
bolized almost  every  deity,  it  was  imagined 
in  the  heavens,  stamped  on  the  earth,  and 
ruled  in  the  realms  of  everlasting  sorrow. 

That  the  serpent  was  a  phallic  symbol 
there  is  no  doubt,  for  its  worship  is  coeval 
with  that  of  the  phallus  and  formed  part  of 
the  religion  of  every  sex-worshiping  nation, 
and  while  the  meanings  attached  to  it  were 
numerous  and  various,  they  all  had  refer- 
ence to  the  creative  or  reproductive  prin- 
ciple of  nature,  and  are  readily  reducible  to 
the  fundamental  worship  of  procreation. 

In  many  instances  the  serpent  was  em- 
ployed as  a  symbol  of  the  Creator,  of  the 
masculine  element  of  generation,  because 
of  its  shape  and  mobility  ;  a  living  phallus, 
as  it  were,  actuated  by  its  self-animating 
spirit,  moving  without  hands  or  feet  or  any 
of  the  external  members  by  which  other 
beings  effect  their  motion.  Among  most 
of  the  eastern  nations,  however,  it  had  a 
more  subtle  significance,  in  that  it  repre- 
sented an  emotion  or  a  feeling  rather  than  i 


THE  SERPENT  AND  THE   CROSS.         125 

material  object  or  actuality.  While  in  a 
general  sense  it  typified  the  Creator,  its 
specific  office  was  the  symbolization  of  the 
animating  spirit  of  procreation,  the  stimu- 
lating factor  in  the  production  and  immor- 
tality of  life. 

This  potent,  energizing  factor  was  the 
sexual  instinct,  the  Divine  Passion.  In  it 
the  ancient  philosophers  beheld  the  vital 
source  of  procreation,  the  moving  energy 
in  the  production  of  life  and  the  population 
of  the  world;  and  hence  to  them  this  divine 
passion,  this  all-pervading,  impelling  force, 
was  the  actuating,  creative  spirit  of  the  Al- 
mighty. Consequently,  it  became  an  ob- 
ject of  veneration  as  the  divine  spiritual 
agent  in  the  great  mystery  of  life,  and,  nat- 
urally, its  worshipers  sought  for  it  some 
suggestive  symbol,  with  the  result  that  the 
serpent  was  chosen,  as  most  fully  and  com- 
prehensively embodying  the  various  attri- 
butes of  the  Creator  in  his  subtle  and  omni- 
potent power. 

In  all  probability,  the  cobra  de  capello,  or 
hooded  snake  of  India,  was  the  particular 
species  of  the  reptile  first  adopted  as  an  em- 


126  SEX  WORSHIP. 

blem  of  the  Divine  Passion,  because  of  its 
highly  suggestive  peculiarities.  It  has  the 
power  of  puffing  itself  up,  enlarging  and 
erecting  its  head,  when  aroused  to  excite- 
ment, and  its  size,  shape,  position,  and  reg- 
ular pulsations  when  in  this  condition,  as 
well  as  its  well-known  power  of  fascination, 
were  all  extremely  significant,  and  readily 
appealed  to  the  fancy  and  superstition  of  an 
emotional  and  religious  race. 

All  of  the  more  ancient  representations  of 
the  serpent  in  the  symbology  of  Egypt, 
Babylon,  Persia,  Greece,  and  other  coun- 
tries bear  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  co- 
bra; but  after  the  adoption  of  this  species 
as  a  religious  emblem  it  was  not  long  be- 
fore the  significance  attached  to  this  par- 
ticular kind  was  extended  to  the  serpent  in 
general,  and  hence  we  find  that  each  nation 
had  its  own  particular  variety  of  snake  as  a 
sacred  symbol  of  the  Divine  Passion,  or  in- 
vigorating energy  of  nature,  in  its  various 
interpretations  of  Wisdom,  Eternity,  Life, 
Reproduction,  and  so  on. 

The  important  significance  of  the  serpent 
is  shown  by  the  fact  that  this  animal  was 


THE   SERPENT   AND   THE   CROSS.  127 

employed  in  all  the  phallic  rites  and  cere- 
monies of  the  ancients,  and  was  an  object 
of  worship  to  every  nation  on  the  globe. 
According  to  the  Bible,  the  brazen  serpent 
made  by  Moses  at  the  command  of  the 
Lord  was  regarded  with  the  deepest  venera- 
tion by  the  Israelites,  and  was  religiously 
preserved  and  worshiped  by  them  for  a 
period  of  seven  hundred  years,  when  it  was 
finally  destroyed  by  Hezekiah,  because  of 
the  idolatrous  rites  connected  with  its  wor- 
ship. 

All  celebrations,  especially  those  in  honor 
of  the  procreative  deities,  were  attended 
with  the  exhibition  and  adoration  of  the 
serpent.  In  the  mysteries  of  Egypt,  Greece 
and  Rome,  the  sacred  reptile  was  carried  in 
the  processions  by  troops  of  noble  virgins, 
and  many  of  the  people  had  living 
snakes  entwined  about  their  heads,  or  car- 
ried them  in  their  hands,  while  shouting 
with  religious  excitement.  Nearly  every 
ancient  city  of  the  East,  as  well  as  in  Mexi- 
co and  other  portions  of  America,  had  its 
serpent  temple,  in  which  were  kept  enor- 
mous specimens  of  this  sacred  reptile,  that 


128  SEX  WORSHIP. 

were  worshiped  and  waited  upon  with  di- 
vine honors. 

Though  as  a  general  rule,  the  serpent 
was  venerated  and  adored  as  the  represen- 
tative of  divine  power,  wisdom  and  good- 
ness, it  was  also  not  infrequently  em- 
ployed as  the  symbol  of  evil.  This  nat- 
urally resulted  from  its  use  as  an  emblem 
of  the  sexual  desire,  for  while  this  instinct 
was  on  the  one  hand  recognized  and  wor- 
shiped as  the  divine  factor  in  the  work  of 
the  Creator,  and  hence  the  source  of  all 
good,  it  was  equally  the  source  of  all  evil. 
It  was  through  it  that  sin  came  into  the 
world;  it  was  the  blind,  overmastering  pas- 
sion that  incited  mankind  to  disobedience 
and  wickedness;  the  inflaming  spirit  of  lust; 
the  tempter,  and  the  seducer.  Conse- 
quently, the  serpent  became  the  representa- 
tive of  sin,  the  personification  of  evil;  and 
this  devil,  this  opposer  of  God,  or  the  Good, 
was  the  sexual  nature,  in  its  sensual  and 
lustful  aspect. 

Accordingly,  it  is  not  difficult  to  compre- 
hend the  allegorical  significance  of  the  ser- 
pent in  the  account  of  the  temptation  and 


THE   SERPENT   AND   THE   CROSS.         129 

fall  of  Adam  and  Eve.  Their  sin  consisted 
in  acquainting  themselves  with  fleshly  en- 
joyments. They  resisted  not  the  prompt- 
ings of  their  sexual  desires,  but  permitted 
themselves  to  partake  of  the  forbidden  fruit. 

The  symbolism  of  the  serpent  is  very  ex- 
tensive and  is  met  with  in  a  great  variety  of 
forms  and  combinations.  It  is,  however, 
seldom  found  as  an  isolated  symbol,  except 
in  the  well-known  Egyptian  design,  in 
which  it  is  shown  with  its  tail  in  its  mouth, 
as  an  emblem  of  immortality  and  future  life. 
As  a  rule,  it  appears  in  conjunction  with 
male  or  female  emblems,  and  one  of  the  old- 
est and  best-known  phallic  representations 
in  which  the  serpent  figures,  is  the  Rod  of 
Life,  or  the  caduceus  of  Mercury. 

This  represents  two  serpents  twined 
about  an  upright  staff  or  pole,  and  typifies 
the  phallus  receiving  life  and  potency  from 
the  Divine  Energy.  Its  special  significance 
is  due  to  the  position  of  the  serpents,  which 
is  that  adopted  by  the  cobra  when  mating. 
A  Hindoo  regards  it  as  a  most  fortunate 
omen  to  be  able  to  witness  this  serpentine 
union,  and  it  is  said  that  if  while  in  this  con- 


130  SEX  WORSHIP. 

dition  a  cloth  be  thrown  over  the  serpents 
it  becomes  endowed  with  extraordinary 
powers.  Pieces  of  cloth  that  have  been  thus 
encharmed  are  preserved  with  the  greatest 
care  and  veneration  as  talismans  for  avert- 
ing evil  influences  or  for  securing  conjugal 
blessings. 

The  staff  of  life  in  a  great  variety  of  forms 
is  common  on  ancient  coins,  gems,  and 
sculptures.  In  many  designs  the  serpent  is 
shown  in  conjunction  with  both  male  and 
female  symbols,  and  ever  has  for  its  signifi- 
cance the  Divine  Passion,  the  invigor- 
ating and  inspiring  energy  of  nature. 

This  divine,  actuating  force  of  nature. 
owed  its  sacredness  to  the  fact  that  it  was 
the  necessary  and  inciting  means  to  the  ac- 
complishment of  the  supreme  life-purpose 
of  man  and  woman — the  union  of  the  two 
for  the  reproduction  of  life  and  the  perpetu- 
ation of  the  race.  It  was  in  the  gratification 
of  the  Divine  Passion  that  man  experienced 
his  most  exalted  pleasure,  and  beheld 
the  direct  and  immediate  cause  of  a  new 
being  and  the  immortality  of  life.  Hence, 
the  act  of  generation,  the  union  of  the  sexes, 


THE   SERPENT   AND   THE    CROSS.  13* 

was  regarded  as  supremely  sacred  and 
divine.  It  was  the  sublime  means  ordained 
by  the  Creator  for  the  fulfillment  of  his  in- 
finite purpose  ;  and,  as  will  be  more  fully 
shown  in  a  subsequent  chapter,  was  re- 
garded as  a  most  holy  act  and  was  the  ob- 
ject of  universal  worship  and  of  devout,  re- 
ligious rites. 

Many  realistic  figures  and  designs  were 
employed  to  represent  this  holy  union  of 
the  sexes,  and  may  still  be  seen  on  the 
temples  and  monuments  of  ancient  Egypt 
and  of  India.  The  most  extensive  and 
sacred  symbol  of  the  Hindoos  is  the  lingam- 
in-yoni,  an  image  made  of  wood  or  stone, 
in  representation  of  the  union  of  the  lingam 
and  yoni. 

Symbols  of  like  significance,  in  endless 
varieties  of  design  and  size,  were  common 
among  the  ancients,  but  pre-eminent  among 
them  all  was  the  cross,  which,  in  its  original 
and  primitive  form,  was  merely  a  simplifica- 
tion of  the  various  designs  used  to  represent 
the  congress  of  the  sexes.  These  in  their 
general  outline  and  shape  consisted  of  an 


*32  SEX  WORSHIP. 

upright  portion,  connected  at  right  angles 
with  a  horizontal  base  ;  the  whole 
resembling,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent, 
an  inverted  y  (J.)  ;  and  this  simplified 
form,  when  made  of  stone  or  wood  and  set 
up  on  end,  in  order  to  be  more  plainly  ex- 
hibited, resulted  in  the  figure  of  the  cross. 

From  time  immemorial  the  cross  has 
been  used  as  a  religious  symbol.  There  is 
no  portion  of  the  world  inhabited  by  man 
in  which  it  is  not  found,  and  there  is  no  time 
in  the  history  of  the  world — back  even  to 
the  ages  of  the  prehistoric  man, — that  this 
sacred  symbol  has  not  been  in  existence. 
It  was  universally  regarded  as  the  emblem 
of  life,  of  regeneration,  or  of  immortality, 
and  was  ever  held  in  the  highest  veneration 
as  the  holiest  of  all  symbols. 

It  appears  in  a  great  variety  of  shapes  ; 
all  of  which,  however,  are  readily  reducible 
to  the  simple,  primary  form.  The  cross  of 
four  arms  meeting  at  right  angles,  and 
commonly  called  the  Greek  cross,  is  found 
on  Assyrian  tablets,  on  Egyptian  and  Per- 
sian monuments  and  on  Etruscan  jars  and 
vases  ;   while  the  Latin  cross,  the  one  now 


THE   SERPENT   AND  THE   CROSS.         133 

used  as  a  Christian  symbol,  is  to  be  seen  on 
equally  ancient  coins,  monuments  and  pot- 
tery, and  stone  images  of  it  have  been  found 
in  the  remains  of  temples  and  habitations 
that  existed  hundreds  and  even  thousands 
of  years  before  the  time  of  Christ. 

A  modified  form  of  this  cross  is  the  crux 
ansanta,  or  handled  cross,  so  called  because 
the  part  above  the  cross-beam  is  in  the  form 
of  an  oval  loop,  and  served  as  a  handle  for 
holding  the  image.     This  cross  is  found  in 
most  of  the  religious  scenes  pictured  on  the 
temples  of  ancient  Egypt,  and  is  most  com- 
monly shown  in  the  hands  of  Isis,  Osiris 
and  other  divinities,  while  images  of  it  are 
not  infrequently  found   on   the  breasts   of 
mummies.    Assyrian  and  Babylonian  sculp- 
tures frequently   exhibit   this   form   of  the 
cross,  and  it  is  prominently  shown  on  some 
of  the  coins  found  in  the  temple  of  Serapis. 
Early  Phenician  coins  bear  the  design  of 
a  semi-circular  chain  of  beads  with  the  cross 
attached  ;    similar  in  every  respect  to  the 
modern  rosary.     Rosaries  of  the  same  kind 
are   also   found   among   the    Buddhists   of 
Japan  and  the  Lamas  of  Thibet. 


x34  SEX  WORSHIP. 

In  the  cave  of  Elephanta,  near  Bombay, 
is  a  sculpturing  that  records  the  destruction 
of  the  male  children  at  the  birth  of  Krishna, 
the  Hindoo  saviour,  who  lived  about  fifteen 
hundred  years  before  Christ,  and  over  the 
head  of  the  executioner,  who  is  surrounded 
with  supplicating  mothers,  is  a  cross. 

When  the  Spaniards  came  to  America 
they  were  astonished  to  find  that  the  natives 
of  Mexico  not  only  had  the  cross  as  a  re- 
ligious symbol,  but  that  they  worshiped  a 
crucified  saviour  and  a  virgin  mother. 
These  unaccountable  features  of  their  re- 
ligion led  to  the  invention  by  the  Christians 
of  a  legend,  that  St.  Thomas  had  miracu- 
lously come  over  to  America  centuries  be- 
fore and  had  revealed  the  doctrines  of  the 
church  to  the  Mexicans.  But  this  legend 
would  fail  to  account  for  the  existence  of  the 
cross  and  other  Christian  symbols  found  in 
the  remains  of  the  prehistoric  races  of  Cen- 
tral America. 

In  the  midst  of  the  forests  of  Yucatan  is 
a  ruined  city.  It  had  long  been  dead  and 
overgrown  at  the  time  of  the  conquest  of 
Mexico.      According  to   tradition,   it   was 


THE   SERPENT   AND  THE   CROSS.         135 

founded  nine  hundred  years  before  Christ. 
In  this  ancient  city  of  Palenque  was  found 
a  building  of  religious  worship,  containing 
several  altars,  and  at  the  back  of  one  of 
them  was  discovered  a  stone  slab,  on  which 
were  sculptured  two  human  figures  stand- 
ing one  on  each  side  of  a  cross,  to  which 
one  of  the  figures  was  extending  his  arms 
and  offering  an  infant. 

The  earliest  and  most  primitive  form  of 
the  cross  was  one  in  the  shape  of  the 
letter  T,  commonly  called  the  tau  cross. 
This  was  the  old.  Scandinavian  symbol  of 
the  god  Thor,  and  is  found  among  the  very 
oldest  nations  of  the  world.  It  was  the 
mark  that  the  Israelites  put  on  their  door- 
posts with  the  blood  of  the  lamb,  on  the  oc- 
casion of  the  Passover,  and  in  the  book  of 
Ezekiel  we  read  that  this  same  sacred  and 
talismanic  sign  was  directed  by  the  Lord 
to  be  placed  on  the  foreheads  of  the  men  of 
Jerusalem  who  were  to  be  spared  in  the  de- 
struction of  the  city  :  "  Slay  utterly  old  and 
young,  both  maids  and  little  children  and 
women  ;  but  come  not  near  any  man  upon 
whom  is  the  mark."    Images  of  this  shape 


136  SEX  WORSHIP. 

were  commonly  used  in  the  religious  rites 
of  the  ancients,  and  it  was  customary 
among  some  of  the  eastern  races  for  the 
women  to  sacrifice  their  virginity  by  rup- 
turing the  hymen  with  a  small  stone  or  iron 
cross  of  this  kind. 

For  three  or  four  centuries  after  Christ 
the  tan  cross  was  employed  almost  exclu- 
sively by  the  followers  of  the  new  religion, 
and  inscriptions  of  it,  as  well  as  of  the  crux 
ansanta,  may  be  seen  on  the  early  tombs 
and  monuments  of  the  Christians.  At  first, 
however,  the  use  of  the  cross  in  any  form 
was  not  permitted  by  the  church  fathers, 
because  it  was  a  pagan  symbol,  and  its  in- 
troduction into  Christian  celebrations  was 
sternly  forbidden  as  rank  profanation. 

Though  it  is  popularly  believed  that  our 
familiar  church  symbol  represents  the  form 
of  the  cross  on  which  Christ  was  crucified, 
there  is  absolutely  no  authority  for  this  be- 
lief, as  there  is  in  existence  no  authentic 
record  describing  the  form  of  the  cross  on 
which  Jesus  was  executed.  These  instru- 
ments of  execution  were  of  various  shapes  ; 
the  simplest  form  being  an  upright  stake, 


THE   SERPENT   AND  THE   CROSS.         137 

on  which  the  malefactor  was  sometimes 
impaled,  and  sometimes  fastened  with  cords 
or  nails.  In  the  other  forms,  the  transverse 
beam  was  frequently  separate  from  the  up- 
right, and  this  was  the  only  part  borne  by 
the  victim  to  the  place  of  execution.  Christ, 
therefore,  was  not  obliged  to  carry  the  en- 
tire cross,  as  is  generally  supposed,  and  rep- 
resented in  pictures,  but  simply  the  cross- 
piece,  which  was  fastened  to  the  upright 
stake  after  he  reached  Calvary. 

From  the  fact  that  the  early  Christians 
used  the  tau  cross  as  a  symbol  of  the  cruci- 
fixion, it  is  probable  that  that  was  the  form 
of  cross  on  which  Christ  met  his  death, 
and  this  is  the  opinion  held  by  most 
scholars  and  investigators. 

Through  all  the  ages  of  humankind,  the 
cross  has  been  the  dearest  and  holiest  of 
emblems,  and  to  the  devout  worshiper  of 
to-day  it  is  the  same  glorious  symbol  of 
redemption  and  resurrection  that  it  was  to 
the  man  or  woman  of  five  thousand  years 
ago.  Primarily  representing  the  divine 
union  of  the  sexes,  it  has  ever  typified  re- 
generation and  the  life  everlasting. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

THE  DIVINE  ACT. 

The  universal  employment  of  the  cross 
in  all  ages  as  a  symbol  of  life  and  immor- 
tality demonstrates  most  conclusively  the 
innate  and  overmastering  reverence  of 
mankind  for  the  divine  act  of  generation, — 
the  union  of  the  sexes, — not  only  because 
of  the  ecstatic  exaltation  that  it  inspired 
(which,  in  many  of  the  ancient  religious  and 
philosophical  writings,  is  regarded  as  a  mo- 
mentary union  with  God,  an  absorption  in- 
to the  Divine  Soul),  but  because  of  its  won- 
derful and  sublime  result.  It  was  the  acme 
of  human  bliss,  a  glimpse  of  the  Divine  Na- 
ture, the  immortalizing  act  of  God.  It  was 
this  which  first  awoke  in  man  a  realization 
of  the  soul,  a  belief  in  the  immortality  of 
life. 

To  the  philosophers  of  antiquity  man  and 
woman  in  their  individualities  were  incom- 
plete creatures  ;  they  were  but  component 
parts  of  one  being.     They  had  in  them  the 


THE  DIVINE  ACT.  139 

potentiality  of  reproduction  and  immortal- 
ity, but  in  themselves  they  were  barren  and 
impotent.  It  was  only  in  their  union,  in 
their  reciprocal  and  co-operative  activity, 
that  they  became  one, — a  perfect  soul. 
Only  then  were  they  capable  of  fulfilling 
the  divine  will  for  which  they  were  mutual- 
ly created. 

It  is  by  no  means  surprising,  therefore, 
that  this  wondrous  and  omnipotent  act 
should  have  been  made  the  object  of  divine 
worship,  and  to  this  day  the  union  of  the 
sexes  is  solemnized  with  religious  ceremo- 
nies, in  continued  recognition  of  its  holi- 
ness. According  to  law,  marriage  is  simply 
a  civil  contract,  a  mere  agreement  to  live 
together,  and  may  be  executed  before  any 
duly  qualified  officer  of  the  law  ;  but  the 
vast  majority  of  us  prefer  that  this  contract 
should  be  made  the  occasion  of  a  religious 
celebration.  In  fact,  many  believe  that 
marriage  is  not  valid  unless  performed  by  a 
representative  of  the  Lord  and  attended 
with  blessings  and  ceremonial  rites.  The 
nuptial  tie  is  held  to  be  a  divine  bond, — 


HO  SEX  WORSHIP. 

'  Those  whom   God  hath  joined  together 
let  no  man  put  asunder." 

And,  after  all,  what  is  the  object  of  a  mar- 
riage ceremony  but  a  sanctification  of  the 
sexual  union  ?  Reverence  for  the  sacred- 
ness  of  this  union  is  still  inherent  in  man- 
kind, and,  because  of  its  holiness,  cannot 
be  consummated  until  properly  sanctioned 
and  hallowed  by  these  religious  ceremonies. 
To  engage  in  the  act  of  generation  in  the 
absence  of  such  consecratory  rites,  is  re- 
garded as  a  wrong  or  a  crime,  even  as  it 
was  four  and  five  thousand  years  ago. 

In  all  ancient  religions  this  reverent  re- 
gard for  the  divine  act  of  creation  led  to  the 
adoption  of  various  rites  and  practices  for 
the  sanctification  of  sexual  unions,  not  only 
in  the  form  of  marriage,  but  of  prostitution, 
which,  under  certain  circumstances,  was 
considered  both  proper  and  holy.  Every 
ancient  temple  had  connected  with  it  a 
number  of  consecrated  women,  whose  office 
it  was  to  submit  themselves  to  the  embraces 
of  any  man  who  might  come  in  unto  them, 
upon  the  payment  of  a  specified  sum  ;   the 


THE   DIVINE  ACT.  141 

money   thus   received   being   used   for   re- 
ligious purposes. 

To  the  minds  of  the  ancients  no  more 
appropriate  nor  holy  means  could  be  de- 
vised for  raising  money  for  the  maintenance 
of  the  temple  than  a  sanctified  indul- 
gence in  the  Divine  Act.  It  was  the  most 
sublime  and  sacred  of  all  human  functions 
— the  consummation  of  God's  will, — and 
consequently  God's  temple  was  the  most 
fitting  place  for  its  performance. 

One  of  the  earliest  allusions  to  these  con- 
secrated temple-women  is  found  in  the  book 
of  Genesis,  where  we  are  told  that  Tamar 
deceived  her  father-in-law,  Judah,  by  veil- 
ing herself  after  the  manner  of  the  women 
of  the  temple,  and  sitting  before  the  door  of 
Enajim,  where  Judah  beheld  her  and  went 
in  unto  her.  The  women  of  this  class  wore  a 
special  attire,  the  principal  feature  of  which 
was  a  long  veil,  and  conducted  themselves 
quietly,  not  seeking  customers,  but  wait- 
ing for  them  to  make  the  first  approach. 
In  this  guise  Tamar  succeeded  in  enticing 
Judah,  who  thought  she  was  a  temple  at- 
tendant and,  consequently,  one  with  whom 


142  SEX  WORSHIP. 

he  was  permitted  to  associate.  The  ordi- 
nary harlot  of  the  Hebrews  was  an  outcast, 
and  was  conspicuous  by  her  immodest 
attire  and  bold  conduct,  it  being  not  un- 
usual for  women  of  this  character  to  rush 
up  to  men  and  kiss  them  in  public. 

Consecrated  prostitution  was  common 
among  all  the  early  nations  of  the  world, 
and  was  everywhere  regarded  in  the  most 
sacred  light.  Some  of  the  ancient  places  of 
worship  were  devoted  entirely  to  this  holy 
purpose,  as  appears  from  the  fact  that  the 
chief  temple  of  Babylon  was  called  Bit- 
Shaggathu,  which  means,  literally,  the 
Temple  for  Copulation. 

The  number  of  women  attached  to  some 
of  these  places  was  very  large  ;  the  temple 
of  Venus  at  Corinth  having  no  less  than  a 
thousand  sacred  prostitutes  connected  with 
it,  while  a  similar  number  belonged  to  the 
temple  of  the  same  goddess  at  Eryx.  In 
later  times,  among  the  Greeks  and 
Romans,  this  practice  lost  much  of  its  re- 
ligious aspect,  degenerating  into  sheer 
licentiousness,    and   Juvenal    tells    us    that 


THE   DIVINE  ACT.  143 

every  temple  in  Rome  was  practically  a 
licensed  brothel. 

This  practice,  in  its  religious  purity,  is 
still  in  vogue  in  many  parts  of  India,  where 
every  important  temple  belonging  to  the 
worshipers  of  what  is  known  as  the  Sac- 
teyan  faith  has  attached  to  it  a  troop  of 
nautch  girls,  or  "  women  of  the  idol,"  who 
are  considered  as  holy  devotees  of  the  faith. 
These  girls  are  chosen  by  the  priests,  when 
quite  young,  on  account  of  their  beauty, 
health  and  activity,  and  it  is  regarded  as  a 
rare  honor  by  parents  to  have  a  daughter 
selected  for  this  holy  profession  ;  even 
high  officials  and  dignitaries  looking  upon 
it  as  a  proud  distinction. 

Among  some  of  the  Hindoo  sects  these 
consecrated  girls  are  considered  particu- 
larly sacred,  as  personifications  of  the  god- 
dess Bhagavatee,  and  are  the  objects  of 
devout  adoration.  Many  persons  perform 
the  worship  of  these  girls  daily.  This  is 
done  by  placing  the  girl,  generally  in  a 
nude  condition,  upon  a  seat  with  flowers, 
paints,  scented  water  and  fruits,  and 
addressing  to  her  prayers  and  expressions 


144  SEX  WORSHIP. 

of  adoration.  She  is  then  presented  with 
costly  offerings  of  cloth,  ornaments  and 
wines,  and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  cere- 
mony, which  is  a  lengthy  and  elaborate 
one,  the  worshiper  offers  incense  and  pros- 
trates himself  before  the  living  idol. 

After  reaching  sexual  maturity  these 
girls  are  initiated  into  the  mysteries  and 
duties  of  their  profession  by  the  consumma- 
tion of  their  marriage  to  the  god.  Their 
great  natural  beauty  is  heightened  by  all 
the  enticements  of  drapery,  jewels,  seduc- 
tive arts  and  general  feminine  witchery. 
Of  all  their  arts  dancing  is  the  most  highly 
cultivated  ;  not,  however,  the  mode  of 
dancing  to  which  we  are  accustomed,  but 
consisting  of  a  pantomime  made  up  of  the 
most  graceful  and  alluring  dramatic  action, 
gestures,  twistings  and  marvelous  undula- 
tory  and  expressive  motions  of  the  arms 
and  legs  and  the  whole  body  ;  a  perform- 
ance which  is  at  once  poetical,  sensual  and 
skillful,  and  constitutes  the  chief  ostensible 
employment  of  these  nautch  girls. 

Their  true  office,  however,  is  to  secure 
revenue  for  the  sustenance  and  enrichment 


THE  DIVINE  ACT.  H5 

of  the  temple  by  giving  themselves  to 
all  who  desire  and  are  willing  to  pay 
for  their  possession.  As  they  are  beauti- 
ful, and  accomplished  in  all  seductive 
and  passion-alluring  arts,  and  are  safe 
companions  by  reason  of  their  perfect 
state  of  health,  and  as  it  is  considered  both 
honorable  and  holy  on  their  part,  as  well  as 
on  the  part  of  their  patrons,  thus  to  swell 
the  treasury  of  the  temple,  it  need  not  be 
wondered  at  that  they  are  much  sought 
after  and  well  paid  for  this  part  of  their  ser- 
vices. 

These  consecrated  women  are  treated 
with  the  greatest  reverence  and  respect  ; 
while  a  Hindoo  woman  who  prostitutes 
herself  for  private  gain,  is  an  outcast  and 
bears  a  disgraceful  name  ;  a  further  illus- 
tration of  the  sanctity  attached  to  the 
Divine  Act  and  of  the  pollution  and  pro- 
fanation resulting  from  its  performance  in 
the  absence  of  religious  auspices. 

Among  many  of  the  ancients  it  was 
taught  that  sexual  indulgence  was  the  true 
and  only  aim  in  life  and  that  it  was  a  re- 
ligious duty  every  man  and  woman  owed  to 


146  SEX  WORSHIP. 

God,  the  Creator.  This  doctrine  was  not 
infrequently  carried  to  its  extreme  ;  nor 
was  it  peculiar  alone  to  the  people  of  an- 
tiquity, for  we  find  that  in  the  Middle  Ages 
certain  sects  of  Christians  held  that  true 
blessedness  on  earth  consisted  in  the  full 
and  unstinted  enjoyment  of  venereal 
pleasures,  which  were  ordained  by  the  Lord 
as  the  divine  means  of  fulfilling  his  glorious 
purpose  and  of  bringing  mankind  more 
closely  into  communion  with  himself  and 
with  the  eternal  blessedness  that  awaited 
them  hereafter.  This  idea  was  in  some  in- 
stances carried  to  such  an  extent,  that  not 
only  were  gross  sensuality  and  crime  per- 
mitted, but  were  actually  recommended,  if 
necessary  for  the  attainment  of  the  desired 
end. 

According  to  one  of  these  sects,  the 
greatest  of  all  sins  (in  fact,  the  only  sin) 
consisted  in  opposing  the  appetites  and  pas- 
sions. These  were  gifts  of  God  ;  they 
were  given  to  man  for  a  divine  purpose,  and 
every  inclination  inspired  by  them  must  be 
fulfilled  as  a  religious  duty  ;  a  tenet  which 
found  many  earnest  followers,  whose  prac- 


THE  DIVINE  ACT.  147 

tices  were  fully  in  keeping  with  their  be- 
liefs. A  custom  adopted  by  them  and  re- 
ligiously carried  out,  was  that  which  re- 
quired the  host  to  offer  his  wife  to  any 
stranger  or  friend  who  was  entertained  at 
the  house.  To  them  genuine  hospitality 
consisted  in  placing  at  the  disposal  of  the 
visitor  all  that  the  host  possessed,  at  the 
same  time  affording  the  guest  an  oppor- 
tunity of  indulging  in  the  rite  prescribed  by 
the  sect. 

The  custom  in  this  case  was  noteworthy, 
because  of  its  adoption  and  practice  by 
civilized  men  ;  but  it  has  always  been  a 
common  feature  of  primitive  social  condi- 
tions, and  at  the  present  day  it  is  to  be 
found  among  many  of  the  uncivilized 
people  of  the  world.  Among  the  coast 
tribes  of  British  Columbia  the  present  of  a 
wife  is  one  of  the  greatest  honors  that  can 
be  shown  to  a  guest.  The  savage  offers  a 
visitor  his  wife  as  we  offer  him  a  seat  at  the 
table.  It  is  not  always  the  wife,  however, 
that  is  offered  ;  it  is  sometimes  a  daughter, 
a  sister  or  a  servant.  Thus,  the  people  of 
Madagascar  warn  strangers  to  behave  with 


148  SEX  WORSHIP. 

decency  to  their  wives,  while  they  readily 
and  willingly  offer  their  daughters.  A 
Tungas  will  give  his  daughter  for  a  time  to 
any  friend  or  traveler  to  whom  he  takes  a 
fancy  ;  and  if  he  has  no  daughter,  he  will 
give  a  servant,  but  not  his  wife  ;  while  in 
other  tribes  wives  are  commonly  given  up 
and  exchanged  in  token  of  friendship, — 
customs  which  will  no  doubt  remind  the 
reader  of  the  practice  in  ancient  Sparta  of 
borrowing  and  loaning  wives. 

The  worship  of  the  act  of  generation  was 
common  to  all  nations  of  the  world,  and 
formed  an  important  feature  of  many  of 
their  religious  celebrations  in  honor  of 
the  procreative  deities.  Homage  to  the 
Creator  consisted  not  only  in  offerings  and 
songs  of  praise,  but  in  the  ceremonial  ex- 
ercise of  the  sacred  function  of  generation 
itself  ;  for,  according  to  the  teachings  of 
all  religions,  no  act  can  be  more  holy  than 
that  done  in  imitation  of  the  Deity.  To  be 
as  God,  to  do  as  he  has  done,  to  follow  in 
his  footsteps,  are  the  golden  and  funda- 
mental precepts  of  every  religious  faith. 
It  was  but  natural,  therefore,  that  the  divine 


THE  DIVINE  ACT.  149 

act  of  creation  should  have  been  devoutly 
performed  as  a  religious  rite,  in  the  pious 
endeavor  to  thus  imitate  the  Almighty  in 
his  glorious  work  of  creation  and  reproduc- 
tion, and  that  it  should  have  been  made  the 
object  of  special  worship. 

A  typical  example  of  the  manner  in 
which  this  ancient  rite  was  frequently  per- 
formed is  to  be  found  at  this  day  among  the 
Kauchiluas  of  India.  This  has  been  de- 
scribed by  a  writer  as  "  a  peculiar  rite  that 
throws  into  confusion  all  the  ties  of  female 
relationship."  Social  restraints  are  wholly 
obliterated  for  the  time  being,  in  honor  of 
the  Creator  and  his  divine  function.  The 
women — maids  and  matrons — deposit  their 
bodices  in  a  box,  each  garment  and  each 
woman  being  numbered  by  a  priest.  At 
the  close  of  the  ritual  of  song  and  prayer, 
each  male  worshiper  takes  a  bodice  from 
the  box,  and  the  woman  who  has  the  num- 
ber corresponding  to  that  on  the  garment, 
even  though  it  be  the  sister  or  daughter  of 
the  man  who  draws  it,  becomes  his  partner 
for  the  fulfillment  of  that  which  has  been 


150  SEX  WORSHIP. 

the  subject  of  their  worship  and  praise  dur- 
ing the  preceding  ceremonies. 

This  rite  and  the  wild  excesses  that  arc 
sometimes  incidental  to  it  are  engaged  in 
by  the  most  devout  and  pure-minded  men 
and  women,  the  majority  of  whom,  outside 
of  this  ceremony  (which  they  consider  a 
sacred  and  solemn  observance  of  their 
faith),  are  as  modest  and  chaste  as  any  de- 
votees of  their  more  enlightened  fellow- 
beings  of  the  western  world. 

Indiscriminate  intercourse  of  this  kind 
was  indulged  in  in  the  temples,  as  a  cus- 
tomary feature  of  the  vernal  festivals  of  the 
Greeks  and  Romans,  held  in  honor  of  the 
procreative  deities,  and  was  condoned  and 
recommended  as  a  proper  and  appropriate 
means  of  glorifying  the  gods. 

Festivals  of  a  similar  kind  were  cele- 
brated throughout  Egypt,  in  honor  of  Isis 
and  Osiris,  the  deities  of  procreation.  The 
celebration  at  Mendes  was  particularly 
noteworthy,  for  it  was  there  that  the  sacred 
goat  was  employed  in  the  ceremonies. 
These  were  of  an  intensely  religious  char- 
acter, inducing  a  high  state  of  excitement 


THE  DIVINE  ACT.  151 

and  enthusiasm,  at  the  climax  of  which 
many  of  the  women  offered  themselves  to 
the  goat  as  the  divine  representative  of  the 
Deity. 

We  are  told  by  Herodotus  that  the  goat 
accepted  this  unnatural  copulation  and  that 
the  union  took  place  publicly  in  the 
assembly,  being  regarded  by  all  as  a  most 
holy  and  sacred  performance  ;  and  the 
women  who  thus  gave  their  persons  were 
held  in  particular  reverence  thereafter  as 
the  recipients  of  divine  favor.  This  par- 
ticular feature  of  the  celebration  was  not, 
however,  confined  to  the  women,  as  is 
shown  by  frequent  references  in  ancient 
records  and  by  Egyptian  sculptures  repre- 
senting the  union  of  men  and  female  goats. 

As  was  stated  before,  such  rites  were  per- 
formed through  a  truly  devout  and  re- 
ligious desire  to  honor  the  Deity  and  win 
his  favor,  by  imitating  the  divine  act  by 
which  life  is  regenerated  and  immortalized. 
Among  some  of  the  ancient  peoples,  this 
divine  generative  function  was  typified  by 
the  public  union  of  a  man  and  woman  ;  a 
performance    which    was     attended     with 


152  SEX  WORSHIP. 

elaborate  religious  ceremonies  and  consti- 
tuted the  most  sacred  and  holy  feature  of 
their  worship.  This  particular  rite  is  still 
practised  by  some  of  the  phallic-worship- 
ing sects  of  India,  and  is  to  be  met  with 
among  the  natives  of  some  of  the  Pacific 
islands.  A  navigator,  writing  of  one  of 
their  religious  festivals,  says  :  "  A  young 
man  of  fine  size  and  perfect  proportions 
performed  the  creative  act  with  a  little  miss 
of  eleven  or  twelve  before  the  assembled 
congregation,  among  whom  were  the  lead- 
ing people  of  rank  of  both  sexes,  without 
any  thought  of  observing  otherwise  than  an 
appropriate  religious  duty." 

Accounts  of  many  other  ceremonies  cele- 
brated in  honor  of  the  divine  procreative 
function,  might  be  given,  but  those  already 
cited  are  sufficient  to  demonstrate  how 
general  and  how  persistent  through  all  time 
has  been  man's  reverence  for  the  immortal- 
izing act  of  generation,  and  that  in  every 
age  and  in  every  country  mankind  has  en- 
deavored to  honor  and  glorify  the  Author 
of  Life  by  appropriate  religious  ceremonies. 


CHAPTER   X. 

REGENERATION. 

In  all  mythologies  and  religious  creeds 
the  regeneration  of  life  figures  as  a  promi- 
nent and  fundamental  feature.  Clothed  in 
a  countless  variety  of  myths,  beliefs  and 
doctrines,  this  glorious  phase  of  nature  and 
of  life  has  from  time  immemorial  been  the 
object  of  man's  joyous  worship,  as  a  typi- 
fication  of  immortality  and  of  the  redemp- 
tion of  mankind.  Through  all  ages  the 
nations  of  the  world  have  celebrated  the 
renewal  of  life  with  gladsome  religious  fes- 
tivals ;  festivals  that,  in  various  modifica- 
tions, are  retained  to  this  day,  and  form  the 
chief  and  most  glorious  feature  of  modern 
religious  worship. 

There  is  not  a  time  in  the  history  of  the 
human  race  of  which  we  have  any  record, 
that  mankind  did  not  celebrate  the  vernal 
reanimation  of  nature  ;  the  resurrection  of 
life.  It  was  in  the  spring  that  the  world, 
the  Earth  Mother,  was  quickened  by  the 


154  SEX  WORSHIP. 

vitalizing  power  of  the  sun,  the  Creator. 
Life  was  re-born.  The  earth  once  more 
awoke  with  renewed  vitality  and  beauty. 
All  the  world,  all  nature  was  a  triumphant 
symbolization  of  life's  regeneration,  and 
hence  the  springtime  became  the  chosen 
season  for  joyous  festivals,  in  honor  of  the 
Creator  and  his  wondrous  powers. 

After  a  glorious  reign  in  the  heavens,  be- 
neath which  the  earth  revels  in  joyousness 
and  beauty,  the  sun  enters  the  wintry 
realms  of  the  southern  sky,  leaving  the 
world  cold  and  cheerless  ;  and  after  an 
absence  of  several  months,  during  which  all 
nature  mourns  and  weeps,  he  reappears  in 
the  gloriousness  of  his  light  and  potency, 
and  brings  back  to  earth  the  life  and  the 
joy  that  have  lain  dead  and  cold  beneath 
the  ban  of  winter.  To  primitive  man  these 
seasonal  events  were  of  the  most  vital  im- 
port. To  him  they  meant  more  than  mere 
natural  phenomena.  They  were  the 
supreme  manifestations  of  the  universal  life 
in  its  wondrous  phases  of  birth,  death  and 
resurrection.  Spring,  summer,  autumn, 
winter,  the  months,  the  earth,  the  sun  and 


REGENERATION.  155 

the  multitude  of  features  and  phenomena 
incident  to  the  annual  revolution  of  the 
earth  became  living  entities,  personifica- 
tions of  beings  and  deities,  whose  relation- 
ship one  to  the  other,  and  the  parts  they 
played  in  the  great  drama  of  nature,  gave 
rise  to  those  myths  and  legends  that,  as 
before  stated,  constitute  the  basis  of  every 
system  of  mythology  and  every  theological 
creed. 

In  many  instances  the  sun,  or  life,  in  its 
garb  of  summer,  was  personified  as  a  youth, 
who,  like  Baldur,  the  Scandinavian  sum- 
mer-god, is  slain  through  the  treachery  of 
the  evil  being  representing  the  frost  or  the 
chilling  month  of  December,  and  is  carried 
to  the  under-world,  there  to  remain  as  a 
captive  of  the  god  of  winter,  but  eventually 
to  return  to  earth  and  once  more  gladden 
it  with  his  presence.  Again,  as  in  the  myth 
connected  with  the  Eleusinian  mysteries 
of  the  Greeks,  life  is  a  maiden— Perse- 
phone,— who  is  carried  away  by  Pluto  to 
the  realm  of  shades,  but  through  the  sup- 
plications   of    her    mother,    Demeter,    the 


J56  SEX  WORSHIP. 

goddess  of  the  earth,  she  is  permitted  to  re- 
turn to  the  world  every  summer. 

From  such  simple  myths  there  arose 
legends  and  beliefs  of  a  more  elaborate  and 
theological  character.  The  sun  in  his 
annual  journey  became  the  almighty 
Creator  himself,  in  the  form  of  a  divine 
Saviour,  glorifying  the  world  with  his  po- 
tent and  sublime  presence,  and  meeting  his 
death  through  the  betrayal  of  one  of  his 
attendants  (the  personifications  of  the 
months  or  the  twelve  signs  of  the  zodiac)  ; 
only  to  rise  again,  however,  in  all  his  glory 
and  supremacy  of  power,  for  the  salvation 
of  man. 

This  version  we  find  represented  in  the 
legend  of  Osiris,  the  Creator  and  Saviour  of 
the  Egyptians,  and  in  a  more  elaborate 
form  it  appears  in  the  story  of  Krishna, 
the  Hindoo  Saviour  and  Son  of  God,  who 
was  born  of  a  virgin,  about  four  thousand 
years  ago.  His  advent  was  heralded  by 
the  joyful  paeans  of  angels,  who  appeared 
in  the  heavens  at  night  and  announced  the 
glad  tidings  to  the  wondering  and  awe- 
struck mortals.     Upon  the  announcement 


REGENERATION.  157 

of  his  birth  the  governor  of  the  province  in 
which  he  was  born  ordered  the  killing  of  all 
the  male  infants,  out  of  fear  for  this  new- 
born ruler  ;  yet  the  Saviour  miraculously 
escaped.  Accompanied  by  his  disciples,  to 
whom  he  was  known  as  Jezeus,  he  traveled 
about  the  country,  working  miracles  and 
preaching  the  gospel  of  peace,  until  he  was 
finally  executed  and  suspended  on  the 
branches  of  a  tree,  from  which  he  miracu- 
lously disappeared,  to  return  to  earth  for 
the  final  redemption  of  mankind. 

The  ancient  springtime  festivals,  cele- 
brated in  honor  of  the  resurrected  life, 
reached  their  highest  and  most  elaborate 
development  in  Egypt,  Greece  and  Rome, 
and  were  commonly  known  as  the 
"  mysteries."  These  mysteries  constituted 
the  most  important  and  sacred  feature  of 
ancient  religious  worship,  and  have  left 
their  impress  on  every  age  and  generation, 
down  to  the  present  day,  in  the  shape  of 
mystic  orders  and  secret  societies. 

They  were  so  called  because  of  the 
secrecy  in  which  many  of  their  rites  were 
conducted,  and  because  of  the  deep  and 
holy  mystery  attached  to  them.     This  love 


158  SEX  WORSHIP. 

of  the  mysterious  is  inherent  in  the  human 
race  and,  as  may  be  imagined,  was  ex- 
hibited in  its  most  intense  form  among  the 
emotional  and  superstitious  people  of  an- 
tiquity. 

The  symbols  and  rites  of  their  celebra- 
tions were  invested  by  the  priests  with  a 
mystical  and  occult  significance,  unintelli- 
gible to  the  masses  and  confided  only  to 
those  who,  after  most  severe  trials  of  faith 
and  endurance,  were  found  worthy  of  in- 
itiation into  the  divine  secrets.  They  were 
then  made  acquainted  with  the  exalted  and 
abstruse  doctrines  evolved  by  the  priest- 
hood from  the  simple  worship  of  nature  ; 
doctrines  that  constituted  a  theosophy  of 
the  most  transcendent  and  spiritual  char- 
acter ;  grand  and  sublime  in  the  loftiness 
of  its  teachings  and  ideality  and  in  the 
beauty  of  its  poetic  conceptions. 

The  mysteries  of  Isis  and  Osiris,  of 
Egypt,  the  mysteries  of  the  Babylonians, 
the  Eleusinian  mysteries  of  the  Greeks,  the 
mysteries  of  Bacchus  and  Venus  at  Rome, 
together  with  many  others  of  lesser  import- 
ance, were  all  festivals  in  celebration  of  the 


REGENERATION.  159 

new-born  life  and  the  regenerative  union  of 
the  creative  elements  of  nature.  They  all 
set  forth  and  illustrated  by  solemn  and  im- 
pressive rites  and  mystical  symbols  the 
grand  phenomena  of  nature  in  its  creation 
and  perpetuation  of  life. 

Among  the  Greeks  and  Romans  these 
vernal  festivals  were  held  in  honor  of 
Bacchus,  or  Dionysos,  the  god  of  genera- 
tive power,  and  his  union  with  Persephone, 
the  returned  goddess  of  life.  He  was 
called  the  father  of  gods  and  men  ;  "  the 
Begotten  of  Love  "  (having  been  born  of  a 
virgin  through  immaculate  love),  and  was 
frequently  represented  by  the  Romans 
under  the  name  and  form  of  Priapus. 

Considering  the  general  state  of  reserve 
and  restraint  in  which  the  Grecian  women 
lived,  we  may  gain  some  idea  of  the  high 
regard  in  which  these  observances  were 
held,  and  the  powerful  influence  they  ex- 
ercised over  the  mind  and  emotions,  when 
we  note  to  what  a  degree  of  extravagance 
the  religious  enthusiasm  of  these  women 
was  carried  on  such  occasions,  particularly 
at  the  celebration  of  the  Eleusinian  mys- 


160  SEX  WORSHIP. 

teries  and  the  Bacchanalia.  The  gravest 
matrons  and  proudest  princesses  appar- 
ently laid  aside  all  dignity  and  modesty,  and 
vied  with  each  other  in  revelry.  They  ran 
screaming  through  the  woods  and  over 
mountains,  fantastically  dressed  or  half 
naked,  their  hair  interwoven  with  ivy  and 
vine  leaves  and  not  infrequently  with 
living  serpents,  that  twined  about  their 
heads  and  necks.  Their  religious  excite- 
ment sometimes  became  so  great  that  they 
ate  raw  flesh,  tearing  living  animals  to 
pieces  with  their  teeth  and  devouring  them 
while  yet  warm  and  palpitating. 

On  these  festal  occasions  they  likewise 
repaired  to  the  temples  or  other  places 
rendered  sacred  by  the  presence  of  the 
god's  image,  and  there  made  offerings  to 
the  divine  emblem  by  wreathing  the  phallus 
with  flowers  and  anointing  it  with 
specially  prepared  wine.  Their  devotions 
were  always  accompanied  with  music  and 
wine,  which  were  considered  the  sacred 
means  of  exalting  and  raising  the  mind  to  a 
closer  communion  with  the  Divine  Power  ; 
and   these   enthusiastic   devotees   willingly 


REGENERATION.  l6l 

gave  themselves  up  to  the  embraces  of  the 
no  less  enthusiastic  worshipers  of  the  oppo- 
site sex,  in  the  nocturnal  ceremonies,  that 
had  for  their  object  the  glorification  of  the 
deity  by  an  indulgence  in  the  divine  act 
of  generation. 

The  worship  of  the  Greeks  was  quite  as 
phallic  as  that  of  other  nations,  but  their 
ceremonies  were  clothed  in  such  attractive 
splendor,  with  a  dramatic  and  poetic  color- 
ing so  alluring  and  effective,  and  with  a 
symbolism  so  beautiful  and  at  the  same 
time  so  comprehensively  significant,  and 
were  conducted  by  an  eloquent  and  cul- 
tured priesthood  in  accordance  with  a  ritual 
so  impressive  and  inspiring,  so  well  calcu- 
lated to  arouse  enthusiastic  and  heroic 
ardor,  and  so  replete  with  charmingly  senti- 
mental, as  well  as  subtly  amorous  sugges- 
tions, that  the  majority  of  the  devotees  be- 
came so  exalted  in  their  worship  as  to  re- 
gard the  sensual  indulgences  and  erotic 
rites  in  which  they  engaged,  as  mere  inci- 
dents rather  than  the  true  object  of  their 
springtime  celebrations. 

The    Romans    borrowed    their    religious 


162  SEX   WORSHIP. 

forms  and  rites  from  the  Greeks,  and  while 
they  did  not  imbibe  the  poetry,  sentiment 
and  enthusiasm  that  characterized  the 
Grecian  festivities,  they  were  none  the  less 
devout  and  sincere.  Their  Bacchanalian 
mysteries  were  celebrated  in  the  Temple  of 
Bacchus  at  Rome  and  in  the  sacred  woods 
near  the  Tiber.  At  first  these  ceremonies 
were  held  in  the  daytime  and  were  attended 
only  by  the  women,  who  were  initiated  into 
the  mysteries  by  the  priests  ;  but  they  were 
subsequently  celebrated  at  night  and  the 
initiation  of  young  men  was  permitted, 
with  the  result  that  in  a  short  time  it  led  to 
the  admittance  of  those  who  were  not  in 
sympathy  with  the  religious  spirit  of  the 
occasion,  but  took  advantage  of  the  oppor- 
tunity for  indulgence  in  licentious  practices 
and  other  crimes,  which  were  speedily  con- 
founded with  the  true  object  of  the  festival, 
and  finally  led  to  the  abolishment  of  the 
celebration  by    a  decree  of  the  Senate. 

The  Liberalia,  the  Floralia,  and  the 
festival  of  Venus  were  popular  vernal 
festivals  celebrated  by  the  Romans  in 
honor    of     the     procreative     deities     and 


REGENERATION.  163 

their  vitalizing  function,  as  manifested 
by  the  glorious  regeneration  of  life 
upon  the  earth.  While  these  festivals 
were  of  a  religious  character,  they  were 
given  up  to  mirth,  jollity  and  public  amuse- 
ments, accompanied  by  a  general  relaxa- 
tion of  the  laws  and  of  social  proprieties,  as 
a  fitting  manner  of  celebrating  the  return  of 
life  and  gladness. 

These  springtime  festivals,  in  celebration 
of    resurrected    life    and    the     generative 
powers  of  nature,  were  common  among  all 
nations  from  the  earliest  times,  and  it  is  in 
some  of  the  particular  forms  of  these  cele- 
brations that  we  find  the  origin  of  our  own 
joyous  festival— Easter.       Among  the  old 
Teutons  and  Saxons  the  month  of  April 
was  held  sacred  to  Eastre,  the  Queen  of 
Heaven,  the  Goddess  of  Life,  and  a  feast  of 
rejoicing  was  held  in  her  honor  at  that  time 
of  the  year.     It  was   customary  to   make 
presents    of    eggs,    which    were    brightly 
decorated  or  colored  ;    the  egg  being  the 
sacred  emblem  of  the  resurrection  of  life, 
and  therefore  used  as  an  offering  to  the 
goddess  on  this  occasion. 


J64  SEX   WORSHIP. 

The  early  Germans  and  Franks  also  pre- 
pared a  special  kind  of  bread  or  bun,  that 
was  eaten  at  this  time  as  especially  sacred 
to  Eastre. 

Eggs  and  buns  figured  also  in  the  Chal- 
dean rites  connected  with  the  worship  of 
the  goddess  of  spring,  the  Renewer  of  Life, 
upwards  of  four  thousand  years  ago,  and 
were  familiar  features  in  the  worship  of  the 
Queen  of  Heaven,  Ishtar,  as  early  as  the 
days  of  Cecrops,  the  founder  of  Athens, 
fifteen  hundred  years  before  Christ. 

These  ancient  buns,  which  were  offered 
to  the  Queen  of  Heaven  and  used  in  sacri- 
fices to  other  generative  deities,  were 
formed  in  the  shape  of  the  reproductive 
organs  ;  a  custom  to  which  reference  is 
made  in  the  book  of  Jeremiah,  where  the 
prophet  says,  "  The  children  gather  wood, 
the  fathers  kindle  the  fire,  and  the  women 
knead  the  dough  to  make  cakes  to  the 
Queen  of  Heaven." 

The  practice  of  making  Easter  buns  in 
this  shape  was  common  among  some  of  the 
early  Christians,  and  prevails  in  certain 
parts  of  France  to  this  day.     Small  cakes 


REGENERATION.  165 

in  the  shape  of  a  phallus  are  made  as  offer- 
ings at  Easter-time  and  carried  about  and 
presented  from  house  to  house.  On  the 
festival  of  Palm  Sunday,  sometimes  known 
as  the  Feast  of  the  Privy  Members,  it  was 
customary,  not  long  since  in  certain  French 
provinces,  for  each  of  the  women  and  chil- 
dren in  the  procession  to  carry  a  phallus, 
made  of  bread,  attached  to  the  end  of  a 
palm  branch.  These  phalli  were  subse- 
quently blessed  by  the  priests  and  pre- 
served by  the  women  during  the  year. 

The  Egyptian  mysteries  were  likewise  a 
springtime  celebration  of  the  regeneration 
of  life.  These  mysteries  represented  the 
death  and  resurrection  of  Osiris,  the 
Creator  and  Saviour  of  men.  The  attend- 
ant ceremonies  were  of  a  most  sacred  and 
holy  character,  invested  with  the  deepest 
mystery  and  sanctity.  The  sacred  ark  was 
reverently  and  tearfully  worshiped  as  the 
sepulchre  of  the  departed  god,  and  the 
lamentations  and  mourning  for  his  decease 
marked  the  beginning  of  the  mysteries. 
On  the  third  day  of  his  death  the  priests,  in 
solemn  procession,  proceeded  to  the  river 


l66  SEX   WORSHIP. 

in  the  night,  carrying  the  ark  with  them. 
Waiting  there  until  the  morning  they  wel- 
comed the  rising  sun  with  a  loud  and 
joyous  shout,  exclaiming  "  Osiris  is  risen!" 
It  matters  not  to  what  race  nor  to  what 
age  we  turn,  we  ever  find  the  same  rever- 
ent regard  for  the  regeneration  of  life. 
Through  all  the  myths  and  ceremonials  of 
the  world,  however  extravagant  or  incon- 
sistent many  of  them  may  appear,  we  trace 
the  constant  aim  of  mankind  to  glorify  the 
Creator  and  to  honor  him  by  the  celebra- 
tion of  rites  and  festivals  demonstrative  of 
the  adoration  of  mankind  for  his  supreme 
powers,  wisdom  and  goodness,  while  be- 
neath them  all  lies  the  universal  actuating 
reverence  for  the  great  and  unsolvable 
mystery  of  procreation — the  foundation  of 
all  religious  worship. 


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